Federal government: ministries and agencies
The Federal Government of Somalia: how it is organised
The Federal Government of Somalia (Dowladda Federaalka Soomaaliya) replaced the Transitional Federal Government on 20 August 2012. It has a President chosen by parliament, a Prime Minister and Council of Ministers running about 25 ministries, a two-house Federal Parliament, federal courts, and independent offices and agencies. It works alongside six federal member states and the Banadir regional administration. Its 2026 budget is about $1.39 billion.
What it is
The Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) is the internationally recognised government of Somalia, based in Mogadishu. It replaced the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) on 20 August 2012, when the Provisional Constitution came into use. Somalia's official name since then is the Federal Republic of Somalia (Federal Government of Somalia, Wikipedia; Provisional Constitution 2012, via Constitute Project).
How it came about
- 1991: the central government of the Somali Democratic Republic collapsed.
- 2000: the Transitional National Government was formed at a conference in Arta, Djibouti, under Abdiqasim Salad Hassan.
- 2004: the Transitional Federal Government was formed in Kenya under Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed.
- 2009: Sharif Sheikh Ahmed became TFG president after a UN-brokered agreement.
- 22 June 2012: leaders agreed the text of the Provisional Constitution; a National Constituent Assembly adopted it on 1 August 2012.
- 20 August 2012: the TFG's mandate ended and the Federal Government began. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was elected its first President in September 2012.
Sources: Federal Government of Somalia, Wikipedia; Constitute Project.
The branches
| Part | What it does | Page |
|---|---|---|
| President | Head of state; appoints the Prime Minister | President and Council of Ministers |
| Prime Minister and Council of Ministers | Runs the ministries, drafts laws and the budget | President and Council of Ministers |
| Federal Parliament | House of the People (275 seats) and Upper House (54 seats); passes laws, approves the budget | Federal Parliament |
| Courts | Supreme Court, Constitutional Court, federal and state courts | Somalia's courts |
| Independent offices | Attorney General, Auditor General, Central Bank | Attorney General, Auditor General, Central Bank |
| Independent commissions | Elections, human rights, anti-corruption, boundaries, civil service and others | Independent commissions |
The constitution changes of 30 March 2024 let the President appoint and dismiss the Prime Minister. The changes of 4 March 2026 set five-year terms and created a Supreme Judicial Council. A referendum on the full constitution is still pending (Somalia's courts).
Ministries
The cabinet has about 25 ministries, from Agriculture and Irrigation to Youth and Sports. The full list is on the President and Council of Ministers page. Ministers change in reshuffles, and the Office of the Prime Minister publishes the current list (Office of the Prime Minister).
Agencies and bodies
Federal agencies with their own pages on this site:
- Somali National Bureau of Statistics (SNBS): censuses, surveys and official numbers. Page
- Somalia Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA): droughts, floods and emergency aid. Page
- National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA): set up in March 2023 to issue national ID numbers. Page
- Immigration and passports. Page
- State media: SONNA, Radio Mogadishu and SNTV. Page
- Ports and the national airline. Ports, Somali Airlines
- Telecoms regulation: the National Communications Authority. Page
- Security forces: the Somali National Army, the Somali Police Force and the National Intelligence and Security Agency (NISA) come under the Ministries of Defence and Internal Security.
Staff and money
- Civil servants: 5,751 in the federal civil service count published by the statistics bureau, 1,488 of them women (SNBS, Facts and Figures 2024, Table 2.23). The federal payroll at the end of 2025 held 23,573 civilian staff (Government jobs and pay). The two counts measure different groups.
- Budget: about $1.39 billion for 2026. In 2025 the government raised $404 million itself, mostly from taxes on trade, and received $516 million in donor grants (Budget and taxes).
The federal government and the states
Under the constitution Somalia is a federation. The federal government shares power with six federal member states, Puntland, Jubaland, South West, Galmudug, Hirshabelle and North Eastern State, plus the Banadir regional administration in Mogadishu (Federal member states). Each state has its own president, parliament and constitution.
- Puntland has not recognised the federal government's authority since 31 March 2024. See Puntland's institutions.
- Jubaland suspended ties after its November 2024 regional vote. See Jubaland.
- Somaliland declared independence in 1991. Israel recognised it on 26 December 2025, and most states and the African Union regard it as part of Somalia. See Somaliland's institutions.
In November 2026
Early in November 2026, five judges of the Supreme Court's Constitutional Division ruled that the terms of the President, parliament and federal government had ended. The Attorney General's office said the ruling had no legal effect, and a new Chief Justice was sworn in on 7 November 2026 (Dawan Africa, November 2026). The UN's political mission closed on 31 October 2026; see International bodies in Somalia.
How to use it
- Find a ministry: most ministries have a website ending in .gov.so; the Office of the Prime Minister lists them.
- Official decisions: the cabinet's decisions are published by the Office of the Prime Minister and by SONNA.
- Documents: for an ID card, passport or birth record, see the NIRA, passport and birth records pages.
Its legal basis
The Provisional Constitution of the Federal Republic of Somalia, adopted 1 August 2012 and amended on 30 March 2024 and 4 March 2026.
Sources
- Federal Government of Somalia, Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
- Provisional Constitution 2012, via Constitute Project · constituteproject.org
- Office of the Prime Minister · opm.gov.so
- SNBS, Facts and Figures 2024, Table 2.23 · nbs.gov.so
- Dawan Africa, November 2026 · dawan.africa
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Where this matters
Same era
- Australia18,401 people of Somali ancestry and 8,101 born in Somalia lived in Australia at the 2021 Census, more than half in Victoria. History, work, issues.
- Birmingham (Somali diaspora)About 17,000 to 21,600 Somalis live in Birmingham (Census 2021), mostly in Nechells, Newtown, Small Heath and Alum Rock. History, work, health and ties home.
- Bristol (Somali diaspora)9,167 people in Bristol identified as Somali or Somalilander in Census 2021, the city's largest minority group. Where they live, work, housing, leaders and ties home.
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada2,845 people of Somali origin lived in Calgary at the 2021 Census, plus 890 in Brooks. How they came, who serves them and what they face.
- Denmark (Somali diaspora)21,885 people of Somali origin lived in Denmark in 2026, half born there. Numbers, history, work, permit reviews, and ties home.
- DjiboutiAbout 13,900 refugees from Somalia live in Djibouti (Aug 2026): numbers since 1990, Ali Addeh, Holl-Holl, the 2017 refugee law, Arta 2000 and 2025 returns.
Keep reading
- Every federal government body in Somalia and its budget, 2025 to 2027A directory of every body in Somalia's federal budget: ministries, agencies, courts, commissions and security forces, with 2025 spending, 2026 budget and 2027 proposed budget in US dollars, and a CSV download.
- Somalia's federal government: the President, the Prime Minister and the Council of MinistersHow Somalia's federal executive works: the President's powers, the Prime Minister, the Council of Ministers, the list of ministries, and presidents since 1960.
- Ministry of Education of Somalia (Wasaaradda Waxbarashada): what it doesWhat Somalia's federal education ministry does: curriculum, national exams, teachers, school counts and higher education, how it shares the work with the member states, and the separate ministries in Puntland and Somaliland.
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Somalia (Wasaaradda Arrimaha Dibadda): embassies and diplomacyWhat Somalia's foreign ministry does, who leads it, where Somalia has embassies, the main issues in 2024 to 2026, and what Somalis abroad can get from an embassy.
- Ministry of Health of Somalia (Wasaaradda Caafimaadka): what it doesWhat Somalia's federal health ministry does: policy, vaccines, medicines, coordination of aid; who leads it; its budget 2025 to 2027; what it reports doing in 2026; and how the work is shared with Puntland, Somaliland and the member states.
- Ministry of Interior, Federal Affairs and Reconciliation of Somalia (Wasaaradda Arrimaha Gudaha)What Somalia's interior and federal affairs ministry does: relations with the member states, local councils, reconciliation and local elections, with the Banadir council vote of 2025 to 2026.