Puntland Local Elections — Enhancing Public Participation: KAAD Institute Hosts Open-Air Public Forum Ahead of Historic Pilot Vote

GAROWE, PUNTLAND, 14 October 2021 — Days before Puntland’s historic pilot local council elections, KAAD Institute hosted “Puntland Local Elections: Enhancing Public Participation — Opportunities and Challenges”, an open-air public forum on raising community participation in the vote.

The pilot elections marked the first time communities in Puntland would elect their local councils directly, one person, one vote. Under the evening sky at the KAAD Centre, the forum brought together civil society leaders — notably the PUNSAA platform and the leadership of the Media Association of Puntland (MAP) — alongside members of the Transitional Puntland Electoral Commission, academics, women’s organisations, researchers, and legal experts.

“Local councils are where citizens first meet their government — participation there is participation in the state itself.”

Dr Abdirahman Jama Kulmiye — Director, KAAD Institute

Evidence ahead of the vote

The session opened with a briefing from the Institute’s research team on participation, civic awareness, and the practical barriers that keep voters — particularly women and young people — away from the polls. Facilitated debate then tested the findings against participants’ own experience across the pilot districts, with contributions taken directly from the floor.

The forum reflected the Institute’s decentralisation and local governance practice: credible local councils are built not only on election day, but through the civic engagement, administrative preparation, and community trust that surround it.

“The pilot councils will succeed if communities see themselves in the process — forums like this help make that happen.”

Senior representative — PUNSAA, Puntland Non-State Actors Association

What comes next

Priorities identified at the forum inform the Institute’s continuing support to decentralisation and local governance in Puntland — carried forward through research, advisory work, and sustained engagement with the communities and institutions building local democracy.