Universities in Somalia: the national university, private universities and how to choose

How many universities?

About 130 universities are registered in Somalia, Permanent Secretary Hassan Mohamed Ali said in August 2026 (Dawan, 26 August 2026). Registered is not the same as checked for quality. The ranking site uniRank lists 35 institutions that meet its own criteria (uniRank: Somalia).

The Somali National University (SNU)

The national university is the oldest. Its own history gives these milestones (Somali National University, history):

• 1950: a Higher Institute of Politics and Administration opens under the UN trusteeship.
• 1956: a Higher Institute of Economics, Law and Social Sciences follows.
• 1969: it becomes the national university, with law and economics faculties.
• 1971 to 1984: faculties of agriculture, education, medicine, engineering, geology, veterinary science, Islamic studies, languages, journalism and political science are added.
• 1991: the state collapses and the university closes for more than two decades.
• 16 August 2014: it officially reopens, after the Cabinet approved it on 26 November 2013.

Today SNU teaches law, medicine, engineering, education, agriculture, sharia, languages, economics and veterinary science, among others (SNU).

The private universities

After 1991, Somalis built their own universities without a state. Mogadishu University and Amoud University in Borama opened in 1999 (Education in Somalia, State University reference). SIMAD began in Mogadishu in 1999 as the Somali Institute of Management and Administration Development and became a full university in 2011 (SIMAD University, Wikipedia).

By 2015, about 40 for-profit universities operated in Mogadishu alone (Chris Havergal, Times Higher Education, 2015). The same report found that few lecturers at many of them held a master's degree or PhD. Many taught in English without teaching English first.

Other well-known universities include the University of Hargeisa, Benadir University and City University in Mogadishu (uniRank).

Who checks quality

The National Higher Education Commission has drafted national standards with up to 200 criteria. Universities will assess themselves, inspectors will visit, and the results will be published. Its chairman, Mahmoud Ahmed Jimale, said: "What is included in the self-evaluation will become the basis for the assessment" (Dawan, August 2026).

The ministry asked a hard question at the launch: can a Somali graduate compete with graduates from other countries for the same job (same)?

How to choose a university

1. Check it is registered with the federal Ministry of Education (moe.gov.so) or, in Somaliland and Puntland, with the regional ministry.
2. Ask about teachers. How many hold a master's or a PhD?
3. Ask the language of teaching. If it is English, is there an English course first? See learn English for free.
4. Ask former students whether graduates found work.
5. Look for outside accreditation or partnerships with foreign universities.
6. Compare fees and ask about waivers for top exam students. See exam results and scholarships.

Why it matters

Somalis rebuilt higher education with their own money when there was no state. The next step is quality that the whole world trusts, so that a Somali degree opens doors everywhere.