Federal government: ministries and agencies
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Somalia (Wasaaradda Arrimaha Dibadda): embassies and diplomacy
Somalia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation runs the country's relations with other states and international bodies and manages its embassies abroad: about 41 embassies, 3 consulates-general and missions to the UN in New York and Geneva. Abdisalam Abdi Ali is minister. In 2025 and 2026 its main work was Somalia's seat on the UN Security Council and its response to Israel's recognition of Somaliland.
What it does
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation speaks for the Federal Republic of Somalia abroad. It runs Somalia's embassies and consulates, takes part in the UN, the African Union, the Arab League, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, IGAD and the East African Community, and receives the credentials of foreign ambassadors in Mogadishu (Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Dawan Africa, EU ambassador). For the bodies Somalia belongs to, see International bodies in Somalia.
Who leads it
- Minister: Abdisalam Abdi Ali, named on the ministry's own pages as minister in 2026 (Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Oman Ministry of Foreign Affairs, April 2026).
- State Minister: Ali Mohamed Omar (Dawan Africa, July 2026).
- Deputy Minister: Hassan Mohamed Ali "Nadaara" (Ministry of Foreign Affairs).
Earlier foreign ministers are listed on foreign ministers of Somalia.
Where Somalia has missions
The ministry publishes a "Find our embassy abroad" list (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). A list compiled from it counts 41 embassies, 3 consulates-general and permanent missions to the UN in New York and Geneva (List of diplomatic missions of Somalia, Wikipedia):
- Africa (17): Algiers, Bujumbura, Djibouti, Cairo, Asmara, Addis Ababa, Nairobi, Tripoli, Rabat, Abuja, Dakar, Pretoria, Juba, Khartoum, Dar es Salaam, Kampala, Lusaka.
- Americas (2): Washington and Havana.
- Asia and the Middle East (17): Baku, Beijing, New Delhi, Jakarta, Baghdad, Kuwait City, Kuala Lumpur, Muscat, Islamabad, Doha, Riyadh, Jeddah (consulate-general), Damascus, Ankara, Abu Dhabi, Dubai (consulate-general), Aden (consulate-general).
- Europe (8): Brussels, Paris, Berlin, Rome, Moscow, Belgrade, Stockholm, London.
Countries without a Somali embassy are usually covered by a neighbouring one; the embassy in Algiers, for example, also covers Mauritania and Tunisia (same source).
Main issues, 2024 to 2026
- UN Security Council: Somalia sat on the Council for 2025 and 2026, its first seat since 1971 to 1972, and held its presidency in January 2026 (International bodies in Somalia).
- Ethiopia and Somaliland, 2024: the ministry treated the January 2024 memorandum between Ethiopia and Somaliland as a threat to Somalia's territorial integrity, and sought support from regional and international bodies; talks led to the Ankara Declaration. The State Minister set out this "sovereignty diplomacy" in July 2026, naming diplomacy, legal means such as the Kenya sea-border case at the International Court of Justice, and the East African Community as its main tools (Dawan Africa, 26 July 2026).
- Israel and Somaliland, 2025 to 2026: Israel recognised Somaliland on 26 December 2025. On 4 November 2026 the ministry condemned Israel's reported appointment of an ambassador to Hargeisa and the start of an embassy building, called the steps "null and void", said opening a mission needs the host state's consent under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, and noted that the African Union, IGAD, the Arab League and the OIC had rejected the recognition (Shabelle Media via AllAfrica, 4 November 2026). Somaliland declared independence in 1991; most states and the African Union regard it as part of Somalia. See Somaliland's institutions.
How to use it
- Somalis abroad: embassies take passport applications and renewals by appointment for the Immigration and Citizenship Agency, which issues the passport, and some embassies, including Nairobi and Pretoria, have NIRA national ID service centres. See Somali passport and National ID (NIRA).
- Contact: the ministry's website lists each embassy's address and phone number.
Its legal basis
The 2012 Provisional Constitution, which gives foreign affairs to the federal government (Article 54), as amended in 2024 and 2026; the Vienna Conventions on Diplomatic and Consular Relations.
Sources
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs · web.mfa.gov.so
- Dawan Africa, EU ambassador · dawan.africa
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs · web.mfa.gov.so
- Oman Ministry of Foreign Affairs, April 2026 · fm.gov.om
- Dawan Africa, July 2026 · dawan.africa
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs · web.mfa.gov.so
- List of diplomatic missions of Somalia, Wikipedia · en.wikipedia.org
- Shabelle Media via AllAfrica, 4 November 2026 · allafrica.com
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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.
- The Federal Government of Somalia: how it is organisedHow Somalia's federal government is built: its history since 2012, its branches, ministries, agencies and independent offices, how it relates to the member states, its staff and budget, and where to find each part.
- 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 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.