STORY: UN, Somalia recommit to end the recruitment and

use of child soldiers

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LANGUAGE: ENGLISH NATURAL SOUND
DATELINE: 29/OCTOBER/2019, MOGADISHU,BAIDOA SOMALIA

SHOT LIST:

1. Med shot, Somali Federal Minister of Defence, Hassan Ali Mohamed,

interacting with UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children
and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba during the meeting
2. Med shot, Participants taking part in the meeting
3. SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) VIRGINIA GAMBA, UN SECRETARY-
GENERAL’S SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR CHILDREN AND ARMED
CONFLICT
"We will accelerate this plan, the whole UN body. The civil society of good
faith will support this plan so that across Somalia in all regions, all law
enforcement officials, all members of any armed forces will be the first to
protect children from violations. And for this, we will support the possibility of
vetting, of screening, of capacity building and of ensuring that children that
are captured, or that escaped, or children that are in any way released, will
also receive the rehabilitation and reintegration needs that they deserve.”

4. Med shot, participants taking part in the meeting

5. SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) HASSAN ALI MOHAMED, SOMALI FEDERAL
MINISTER OF DEFENCE
“The Government does not accept the recruitment of under eighteen years
old. Although there are other elements like al-Shabaab and Daesh that are
using children under eighteen years old. We thank the United Nations
Security Council, as well as the UN Secretary-General who has assisted us
through the Peace-building Fund (PBF).”
6. Med shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, signing the roadmap that seeks to protect
children from recruitment and use as combatants during conflict
7. Close up shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children
and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, signing the roadmap that seeks to
protect children from recruitment and use as combatants during conflict
8. Med shot, Somali Federal Minister of Defence, Hassan Ali Mohamed, signing
the roadmap that seeks to protect children from recruitment and use as
combatants during conflict
9. Close up shot, Somali Federal Minister of Defence, Hassan Ali Mohamed,
signing the roadmap that seeks to protect children from recruitment and use
as combatants during conflict
10. Wide shot, participants looking on
11. Med shot, Somali Federal Minister of Defence, Hassan Ali Mohamed, and UN
Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict,
Virginia Gamba, exchanging the signed documents
12. Med shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, holding the signed document
13. Wide shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, holding the signed document
14. Med shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, and Somali Federal Minister of Defence,
Hassan Ali Mohamed, posing for a photo with the signed roadmap
15. Wide shot, DSRCC Simon Mulongo, talking during the meeting
16. Med shot, AMISOM officials listening during the meeting
17. Med shot, officials in the meeting
18. Wide shot, DSRCC, Simon Mulongo making his remarks during the meeting
19. Close up shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children
and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, talking during the meeting
20. Med shot, officials in the meeting
21. Med shot, officials posing for a group photo
22. Wide shot, officials interacting at the end of a meeting
23. Med shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, alighting from the UN plane at Baidoa Airport
24. Med shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, greeting officials
25. Wide shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, walking away from the Baidoa Airport
26. Wide shot, President of South West State, Abdiaziz Mohamed Laftagareen
arriving in the conference room
27. Med shot, President of South West State, Abdiaziz Mohamed Laftagareen
and UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed
Conflict, Virginia Gamba, seated in the conference room
28. Wide shot, participants meeting in the conference room
29. SOUNDBITE: (ENGLISH) VIRGINIA GAMBA, UN SECRETARY-
GENERAL’S SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE FOR CHILDREN AND ARMED
CONFLICT
“We recognise in the United Nations the great sacrifice of South West
State in hosting the majority of the internally displaced community.”
 30. Med shot, President of South West State, Abdiaziz Mohamed Laftagareen
and UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and Armed
Conflict, Virginia Gamba, shaking hands
31. SOUNDBITE: (SOMALI) ABDIAZIZ MOHAMED LAFTAGAREEN,
PRESIDENT OF SOUTH WEST STATE OF SOMALIA
“Our discussions focused on the protection of children from recruitment
as fighters, protection of women’s and children’s rights. We had good
discussions and agreed to launch a campaign and come up with plans
to educate children.”

32. Med shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and

Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, meeting UN staff in Baidoa
33. Wide shot, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Children and
Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba, meeting UN staff in Baidoa

UN, Somalia recommit to end the recruitment and use of child soldiers

Mogadishu, 30 October 2019 – The Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) has renewed its
commitment to end the recruitment and use of child soldiers by signing a roadmap detailing
measures and practical actions to prevent violations against children, release children
associated with armed forces, and reintegrate them into communities. The Special
Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Virginia Gamba,
witnessed the signature of the roadmap.

"The whole United Nations body and the civil society of good faith will support this plan so
that across Somalia in all regions, all law enforcement officials, all members of any armed
forces will be the first to protect children from violations,” said Ms. Gamba.

“And for this, we will support the possibility of vetting, of screening, of capacity building and
of ensuring that children that are captured, or that escape, or children that are in any way
released, will also receive the rehabilitation and reintegration needs that they deserve,” Ms.
Gamba added.

The UN official was speaking in the wake of signing of the roadmap, which is in line with
action plans signed by Somalia and the UN in 2012 to protect children from recruitment and
use by the army and protection of children from being killed and injured.

According to the UN Secretary-General's Report on Children and Armed Conflict, released in

June 2019, armed groups in Somalia forcefully recruited and used in conflict 2,228 boys and
72 girls in 2018. Al-Shabaab recruited 1,865 children, accounting for the highest number of
child recruits.
Somalia’s Federal Minister of Defence, Hassan Ali Mohamed, represented the FGS at the
signing of the agreement. In his remarks, he emphasized the FGS’s commitment to ending
children’s rights violations, including forceful recruitment.

$2 million project to reintegrate former child soldiers

While in Somalia this past week, the UN official also visited Baidoa, the capital of the South
West State (SWS), where she announced the launch of a $2 million Peace Building Fund
project supporting the prevention of child recruitment and reintegration of children
formerly associated with armed forces and groups. The project aims to reinforce prevention,
screening Somali security forces including regional forces to ensure that there are no
children in their ranks, release those identified, rehabilitate and reintegrate them.

Following a meeting with SWS’s President Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen and his
cabinet ministers, Ms. Gamba stressed the commitment of the UN and international
partners to preventing all forms of violations against children.

Speaking at the end of their meeting, President Laftagareen expressed his agreement on the
way forward to strengthen child protection.

"Our discussions focused on the protection of children from recruitment as fighters,

protection of women's and children's rights. We had good discussions and agreed to launch
a campaign against child rights violations and come up with plans to educate children," the
SWS leader said.

Ms. Gamba, whose visit to Somalia ended yesterday, also met the Prime Minister and
members of cabinet whose dockets touch on children including Minister of Defence,
Women and Human Rights Development, Justice, Education, Police Commissioner, civil
society organizations working on child protection issues, the UN Assistance Mission in
Somalia (UNSOM) and international partners.