The UN has stepped up its support for peace-making efforts in Somalia with two trust funds, an official has said.

The funds, the official added, will help the Amisom peacekeeping force and the Transitional Federal Government in the war against al-Shabaab militants.

Speaking to the Nation in Nairobi, Mr Lynn Pascoe, the UN’s head of political affairs, whose plane had to turn back as he neared Mogadishu amid heavy shelling, said; “the help we give is mainly with salaries and other supplies’.’

After his failed attempt to visit Mogadishu, Mr Pascoe held talks with Somali officials in Nairobi among them Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke.

Briefing the Nation on a trip that also took him to South Africa, Angola, Uganda and Burundi, Mr Mr Pascoe said: “In this job, I travel to several parts of Africa, working with such regional groupings as Ecowas on a crisis such as Guinea or the SADC on an issue such as Madagascar.’’

The UN political office has also been involved in peace-building missions in Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone.
The trip started in South Africa to gauge its role in peace-building on the continent and check on President Jacob Zuma, who has a key role in peace-building in Africa.

In Angola, the exchange with the Democratic Republic of Congo that led to the expulsion of thousands of refugees by both sides, featured prominently in talks.

In Burundi and Uganda, the main reason for the visit was the conflict in Somalia, where both countries have deployed peacekeepers.
He said: “In Bujumbura and Kampala, we discussed Somalia. Both countries have three battalions each in Somalia and are talking about putting a fourth.’’

Mr Pascoe, however, said that he cannot carry out any assessment of any government because “governments are our bosses; all we can do is observe.’’
He added: “The aim of this trip was to coordinate our positions with regional groupings and see the areas we can help.’’

He told of several missions in Africa: “We have political and development missions that help troubled nations resume the normal path as was the case in Burundi.’’

Source: nation.co.ke

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