Security Council Resolution 2568 (2021) [on Authorization to the Member States of the African Union to Maintain the Deployment of the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) Until 31 Dec. 2021]

S/RES/2568(2021)View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A document of the Security Council, under agenda item 84 The situation in Somalia, published in 2021.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Entity	(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
	Programme 2	Political affairs	17

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

1 entity

Entity	(Sub-)Programme	Title	Total mandates cited	Expenditure
	Programme 2	Political affairs	17	—

Historical expenditure covers the complete programme or subprogramme, not this mandate. For an overview of all UN entities and programmes, see UN entities and programmes.

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

4 reports · 2021–2022

Year	Symbol	Title	Mandate resolution
2022	S/2022/101	Situation in Somalia report of the Secretary-General	S/RES/2568(2021)
2021	S/2021/944	Situation in Somalia report of the Secretary-General	S/RES/2568(2021)
2021	S/2021/723	Situation in Somalia report of the Secretary-General	S/RES/2568(2021)
2021	S/2021/485	Situation in Somalia report of the Secretary-General	S/RES/2568(2021)

What subjects does this mandate have?

5 subjects

Internal Security Peacekeeping Operations Somalia Somalia Situation Support Services

What’s in this document?

76 operative paragraphs

Reiterates its aspiration that Somalia should be responsible for its own security, emphasises that the FGS should lead the security transition process and it should effectively start in 2021, welcomes in this regard the STP urges the FGS and FMS to fully implement their commitments and further urges Somalia’s international partners to support Somalia in fulfilling these commitments, including by ensuring AMISOM’s strategic tasks and priorities support the transition to Somali responsibility for security;

Recognises the role of the African Union Peace and Security Council, takes note of its request that the African Union Commission finalise its independent assessment to report in May 2021 and urges it to mandate in May 2021 an AMISOM that supports and enables the implementation of the STP and identifies and implements the necessary steps in 2021 in order to ensure continued delivery of support to Somali security efforts in 2022, including through a reconfigured African Union mission, from 2022 that is better able to face the changing threat posed by Al Shabaab and armed opposition groups, and is focussed on supporting and enabling the SSF to take primary responsibility for security;

Reiterates that while Al Shabaab remains the most immediate and pressing security and stability threat to Somalia, it and armed opposition groups will not be defeated by military means alone, and in this regard, urges the FGS and FMS with the support of the African Union, the United Nations and international partners to work closer together to increase the delivery of non-military activities to address Al-Shabaab’s organised crime, illicit finance, access to and trafficking in small arms and light weapons, procurement, justice and propaganda activities;

Underlines the need for Somalia and its partners to take a coordinated and cohesive approach towards Somali-led political and security reforms, with all joint operations, and strategic and operational decisions, including SSF force generation, to ensure transition of security responsibilities agreed between the Somali authorities, SSF, and AMISOM from the outset, in coordination with the United Nations and other international partners where appropriate, and therefore calls on:

The FGS to lead strategic coordination through regular high-level meetings of the Somali Transition Plan Strategic Steering Committee supported by the Security and Justice Committee (formerly the Comprehensive Approach to Security Executive) and the Somalia Development and Reconstruction Facility Committee;

The FGS, FMS, AMISOM, UNSOM, UNSOS, and international partners to increase coordination and collaboration, including by establishing a joint fusion cell to plan and deliver integrated strategic operations led by the Somali Government, and with support from the African Union, the United Nations and Somalia’s security partners, and to conduct joint analysis, joint integrated planning, operational coordination and joint performance assessment noting that UNSOS has already constructed a suitable facility in Mogadishu and further calls on the FGS, FMS, AMISOM, UNSOM, UNSOS and international partners to extend the joint fusion cell into the AMISOM sectors;

International and regional partners, in coordination with AMISOM, UNSOM and through the CAS, to continue to coordinate and better align their support with respect to mentoring, training, provision of equipment, capacity building of SSF, and remuneration of police and military forces of Somalia including through ensuring that all such support and assistance is appropriately notified as required by resolution 2551 (2020);

Underscores that the primary responsibility for protecting civilians lies with the Somali authorities, further underscores the importance of protecting civilians in accordance with international humanitarian law, underlines the need for Somalia and its international partners to take into account the security situation in each location during transition of security responsibilities to Somalia, emphasises that planning and decision-making should be guided by a comprehensive assessment of the threat to civilians and that proactive measures to mitigate risks should be taken, including by establishing an appropriately-sized and qualified SSF presence to ensure continued security and protection before, during and after military action, and reaffirms the essential role of the police and justice sector in stabilisation efforts and the preparation and conduct of elections;

AMISOM

Objectives and functions

Reiterates its objective of enabling Somalia, through support from AMISOM’s military, police and civilian components to take full responsibility for its security in the future, with the aim of Somalia taking the lead in 2021, and achieving full responsibility by the end of 2023 in line with the STP and taking into consideration the situation on the ground;

Recognises the need for a reconfigured African Union mission, from the beginning of 2022, which is focussed on enabling and supporting SSF to take primary responsibility for security;

Requests the African Union and FGS to conduct a joint update to AMISOM’s Concept of Operations (CONOPS) in line with the STP up until the end of 2023 and in close collaboration with the FMS, United Nations and international partners, to be presented to the Security Council no later than the end of August 2021 to help inform decisions about the size and shape of the future mission, including its logistical requirements and stresses that the size of the mission will decline over time as Somalia takes on greater security responsibilities;

Requests the Secretary-General, jointly with the African Union and in consultation with the FGS and donors, to produce a proposal on the strategic objectives, size and composition of a reconfigured African Union mission by the end of September 2021;

Decides to authorise the Member States of the African Union to maintain the deployment of 19,626 uniformed AMISOM personnel until 31 December 2021, inclusive of a minimum of 1,040 AMISOM police personnel including five Formed Police Units, as well as 70 AMISOM civilian personnel supported by the UN Support Office in Somalia to conduct tasks in line with the STP, and the phased handover of security to Somali security forces commencing in 2021;

Decides that AMISOM shall be authorised to take all necessary measures, in full compliance with participating States’ obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and in full respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity, political independence and unity of Somalia, to carry out its mandate;

Decides to authorise AMISOM to pursue the following strategic objectives:

Reduce the threat posed by Al Shabaab and armed opposition groups with a view to enabling a stable, federal, sovereign and united Somalia;

Support actively the transfer of security responsibilities from AMISOM to the SSF by helping to build the capacity of the SSF through training and mentoring, by facilitating the handover of responsibility for security functions from AMISOM to Somali authorities in liberated areas, and by conducting jointly planned and agreed operations with the SSF with increasing emphasis on these being Somali-led;

Assist the FGS, FMS and SSF in providing security for the political process at all levels, including stabilisation efforts, reconciliation, and peacebuilding, and by providing relevant support to Somali police and civilian authorities;

Decides to authorise AMISOM to carry out the following functions to achieve these objectives:

Noting paragraphs 2 and 8 in this resolution and working towards the operational timetables and objectives identified within the STP, maintain a presence in the sectors set out in the joint CONOPS, prioritising the population centres identified by the FGS and agreed by AMISOM;

Conduct jointly-planned and targeted offensive operations with the SSF, to disrupt and degrade Al Shabaab and armed opposition groups, and to take actions to mitigate the threat posed by improvised explosive devices;

Conduct jointly-planned, integrated operations with the SSF, in coordination with other international partners and stabilisation and reconciliation actors, to secure and recover areas from Al-Shabaab, and allow for the transfer of security responsibilities in these areas to the SSF when appropriate;

Realign AMISOM sectors with FMS boundaries by the end of 2021, establish a joint planning Headquarters between AMISOM and the SSF in each sector/FMS, including to deploy where possible/appropriate multinational forces to these sectors;

Provide mobile capabilities, assisting the SSF’s force posture to become more offensive with the objective of having one designated AMISOM mobile reserve per Sector, capable of acting as a Quick Reaction Force and operating across sector boundaries with other forces, by the end of August 2021;

Contribute towards securing and maintaining main supply routes in collaboration with the SSF, including to areas recovered from Al Shabaab, and in coordination with stabilisation and reconciliation actors, in particular supply routes essential to improving the humanitarian situation, which may include commercial goods essential to meeting the basic needs of civilians, those critical for logistical support to AMISOM, and routes that support the delivery of the STP;

Assist, as appropriate, the SSF to provide security support to enable the FGS and FMS to carry out their functions of government, including support by AMISOM’s civilian component to their efforts towards stabilisation coordinated with the Ministry of Interior, Federal Affairs and Reconciliation (MoIFAR) and Community Recovery and Extension of State Authority and Accountability (CRESTA/A), reconciliation, peacebuilding, election preparation and provide support to enable the SSF to provide security for the process and other critical infrastructure;

Protect, as appropriate, its personnel, facilities, installations, equipment and mission, and to ensure the security and freedom of movement of its personnel, as well as of United Nations personnel carrying out functions mandated by the Security Council;

Receive defectors on a transitory basis, as appropriate, and in coordination with the United Nations and the FGS;

Support and assist the FGS and the FMS in implementing the total ban on the export of charcoal from Somalia and the documentation and facilitation of the inspection of seized equipment including small arms and light weapons as requested in paragraph 18 of resolution 2111 (2013) and paragraph 6 of resolution 2182 (2014);

Noting paragraphs 2, 6 and 12 of this resolution, further noting Somalia’s direction as set out in the STP, and paragraph 10 of the AU PSC communique of 9 February 2021, welcomes the envisaged reconfiguration of AMISOM so that it is focussed on enabling and supporting SSF and the protection of the UN in Somalia, and further authorises it to commence initial work to reconfigure in each Sector towards providing the following functions:

provide the following support functions for the SSF: countering IEDs, surveillance, reconnaissance and targeting, command and communications support, civil-military coordination, medical evacuation, engineering, and the establishment of a mobile quick reaction force for each sector;

provide the following enabling support functions for the Somali Police Force (SPF) and civilian stabilisation and governance functions to support FGS and FMS efforts in institution and state-building, including: civilian and police planning and liaison, joint patrols, providing security escorts providing specialised investigation expertise and community policing support in a gender-responsive manner;

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Build the capacity of the SSF and SPF while ensuring coherence with international partners undertaking similar work, and focussing on: planning and managing integrated operations, countering IEDs, counter-terrorism operations, logistics, engineering, reconnaissance and surveillance, military communication and community policing;

Mentor and assist SSF to ensure that trained SSF units are able to operate with AMISOM, including by conducting joint exercises and operational rehearsals, enabling SSF operations through mentoring of combat and combat support capabilities on operations and through delivering training and mentoring where necessary for Somali police;

Requests the African Union to continue to strengthen oversight and operational coordination among AMISOM contingents, strengthen command, control and accountability of the operationalisation of mission enabling units, including air assets, enabling the creation, operationalisation and deployment of mobile forces in the Sectors in line with AMISOM’s reconfiguration, ensure coordinated operational decision making under both the Sector and Force Commander;

Supports the African Union equipment reviews undertaken in 2019, urges the African Union to finalise its equipment review, in-line with the CONOPS review, and with United Nations support, taking into consideration Statement of Unit requirements (SURs), and within existing resources, in order to strengthen AMISOM’s operational capabilities, fill gaps in resource requirements, and enhance its force protection to carry out their mandated tasks, and further encourages Member States to support the African Union in mobilising the required resources and equipment, including through un-caveated financial contributions to the AMISOM Trust Fund based on deliverable recommendations set out in the equipment review;

Urges the deployment of the remaining civilian component to provide full support to AMISOM’s military and police tasks for reconfiguration of AMISOM to support transition to SSF-led operations and drawdown;

Strongly underlines the continued importance of AMISOM forces carrying out their mandate in full compliance with participating states’ obligations under international law, including with regard to the protection of civilians, especially women and children, and of cooperating with UNSOM and UNSOS in implementing the Human Rights Due Diligence Policy on United Nations support to Non-United Nations security forces (HRDDP) across the preparatory, conduct and review phases of operations, including in the context of joint operations with the SSF, calls upon AMISOM to undertake, and upon the African Union to ensure, regular monitoring and prompt and thorough investigations into and reporting on allegations of violations and abuses of international human rights law and violations of international humanitarian law, as well as ensuring the highest standards of transparency, and conduct and discipline, and harmonisation of their procedures with UNSOM, welcomes the African Union’s progress on the development of a compliance framework, and urges troop- and police-contributing countries to strengthen their cooperation with the African Union and the United Nations to ensure the effectiveness of the AMISOM compliance and accountability measures;

Requests AMISOM to strengthen uniformity of reporting to the Civilian Casualty Tracking Analysis and Response Cell (CCTARC) across all of the sectors, and take further steps to ensure mitigation measures are in place, underlines the importance of ensuring information is shared with relevant actors including the United Nations, is integrated into AMISOM reporting, and feeds into operational guidelines and plans, and requests the full support of troop and police contributors to the CCTARC, in collaboration with humanitarian, human rights and protection actors;

Reaffirms the importance of AMISOM’s zero-tolerance policy on Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, and in this regard stresses the need to prevent such exploitation and abuse, requests the African Union and troop- and police-contributing countries to screen personnel, undertake risk assessments, deliver all relevant training to personnel, to protect and support the relief and recovery of survivors who report abuse, carry out timely investigations into allegations, to hold perpetrators accountable, and to repatriate units where there is credible evidence of widespread or systemic sexual exploitation or abuse by those units, and further requests the African Union to work closely with the United Nations in this regard;

Strongly encourages efforts to increase the percentage of female uniformed personnel deployed to AMISOM by the troop- and police- contributing countries, and urges AMISOM to ensure the full, effective and meaningful participation of women across its operations and to integrate a gender perspective throughout the delivery of its mandate;

Logistical and financial support

Requests the Secretary-General to continue to provide a logistical support package in full compliance with HRDDP, through UNSOS for UNSOM, AMISOM uniformed personnel and 70 AMISOM civilians, on the basis set out in operative paragraph 2 of resolution 2245 (2015) and in line with paragraphs 10 and 11 in this resolution, and support to 13,900 SSF, including an appropriate share of the state and federal police who are formally integrated into the SSF in line with the National Security Architecture and who are actively participating in joint or coordinated operations with AMISOM that directly implement the STP, reiterates the importance of AMISOM and the SSF working jointly with UNSOS on the delivery of logistics support, including inter alia ensuring convoy and airfield security, protection of civilians and protecting main supply routes, further requests the Secretary-General to expand United Nations support to Somali security forces to include training, equipment and mentorship to counter the threat of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and further requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with all relevant stakeholders, to present options for continuing United Nations logistical support from 2022, to include continued UN support for UNSOM and to the SSF alongside a reconfigured African Union mission, for consideration by the Security Council by the end of October 2021;

Agrees with the Secretary-General that oversight and accountability, in particular compliance with HRDDP will be the cornerstone of the partnership between the United Nations, the African Union, the FGS and the FMSs, requests the Secretary-General to ensure that any support provided to non-United Nations security forces is provided in strict compliance with the HRDDP, and requests the FGS and African Union to agree as a matter of urgency, a memorandum of understanding with the United Nations on the conditions of provision of United Nations support to SSF;

Requests the Secretary-General to work closely with the African Union in supporting the implementation of this resolution, including to provide technical and expert advice on the planning, deployment and strategic management of AMISOM in line with the mandate of the United Nations office to the African Union;

Notes with appreciation the continued financial support to AMISOM, including from the European Union and urges new donors to provide support for:

AMISOM, including through the provision of additional funding for troop stipends, equipment, and technical assistance for AMISOM, as recommended in the African Union/United Nations funding report and to support the effective functioning of the CCTARC and the disbursement of amends;

The United Nations Trust Fund in Support of the African Union Mission to Somalia and SSF, including funding directed to training equipment and funding and mentoring of the SSF to counter the threat of improvised explosive devices, tackle the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, and to support SPF as set out in paragraph 20;

National and state-level institutions for the development of the Somali security sector, including capacity building for the maritime police force in line with resolution 2246 (2015);

Underlines the need to enhance the predictability, sustainability and flexibility of financing for African Union-led peace support operations authorised by the Security Council and under the Security Council’s authority consistent with Chapter VIII of the Charter, and encourages the Secretary-General, African Union and Member States to continue efforts to explore in earnest funding arrangements for AMISOM, bearing in mind the full range of options available to the United Nations, African Union, the European Union, and to other partners, and considering the limitations of voluntary funding, in order to establish secure future funding arrangements for AMISOM;

Somalia

Calls on the FGS and FMS to organise free, fair, credible and inclusive elections in line with the 17 September agreement without further delay, and urges the FGS and FMS to finalise political agreement to this end;

Supports FGS efforts to reform its institutions and build capacity in the security sector, and takes note of the Mutual Accountability Framework for 2021 (MAF), welcomes progress made on joint operations including Operation Badbaado, and reiterates the urgency and necessity of full cooperation between the FGS and its FMS in order to deliver its commitments;

Welcomes the STP, calls on the Somali authorities to work urgently to deliver it, with the coordinated support of the international community, in order to assume greater responsibility for national security in 2021, and to urgently develop and implement a strategic plan to generate new SSF, integrate existing forces where appropriate, and train and equip current and newly generated FGS and FMS forces with clear targets and timelines and, in this regard, calls on the FGS, working with the FMS, to set out a clear way forward on the process for Force Generation and integration of regional forces, prior to the development of the CONOPs, noting the need for enhanced capacity and capabilities of the SSF and calls further for the FGS and FMS to enhance civilian oversight of their security apparatus and to continue to adopt and implement appropriate vetting procedures of all defence and security personnel, including human rights vetting;

Calls on the Somali authorities to ensure that they properly resource the delivery of the STP, including the command, control and coordination mechanisms required to enable the planning, conduct and delivery of joint operations with AMISOM at the strategic and operational levels;

Calls on the FGS and FMS to fully support the state and federal police through effective training, provision of equipment, and sustainment support, reiterates the critical role police play in securing and holding territory and emphasises that a professional and capable police force, able to contribute to providing security for civilian populations, is necessary for the FGS and FMS to fully implement the STP, and encourages more inclusive and representative SSF and SPF recruitment from all sections of Somali society;

Calls on the FGS and FMS, to ensure all security and police forces fully respect international human rights law and international humanitarian law and to ensure that those responsible for violations and abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law are held accountable, further calls on the United Nations, African Union and other international partners to support the Somali authorities with this as appropriate and requests that AMISOM share the experience and lessons-learnt from the operation of CCTARC with national authorities, including with a view to supporting the development of Somali civilian casualty monitoring, mitigation, and prevention policies and mechanisms;

Calls upon the Somali authorities, in coordination with AMISOM, international partners, and relevant United Nations entities, including UNMAS, to combat the illicit trade, transfer, destabilising accumulation, and misuse of small arms and light weapons in all aspects, to prevent access of unauthorised recipients to all types of explosives and related materials in Somalia, and to ensure their safe and effective management and storage;

Calls upon the Somali authorities, in coordination with AMISOM, international partners, and relevant United Nations entities, including UNODC, to combat illicit financial flows and address Al Shabaab’s ability to generate revenue through organised crime operations;

Reaffirms the importance of the full, equal, meaningful and effective participation of all Somalis, including women, youth, persons with disabilities, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and refugees in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, reconciliation processes, peacebuilding and elections and other political processes, and acknowledges the significant contribution that civil society can make in this regard;

Calls on Somali authorities to work with relevant partners to ensure protection for all from sexual and gender-based violence, including sexual exploitation and abuse and conflict-related sexual violence, to take appropriate steps to investigate allegations, strengthen legislation to support accountability in line with relevant resolutions, and to accelerate the implementation of the Joint Communiqué and the National Action Plan to combat sexual violence in conflict;

Expresses its grave concern over reports of increased incidents of killing, maiming, rape and other forms of sexual violence used against children in armed conflict as well as the continuing high levels of unlawful recruitment, re-recruitment, including in non-combatant roles, and use as well as abduction of children, calls on the Somali authorities to take action to prevent all forms of violence against children and to hold those responsible to account, calls upon the Somali authorities to take appropriate measures to prevent attacks against civilian infrastructures including against schools and hospitals, and to prevent their military use, to cease detentions of all children on national security charges where this is in violation of applicable international law and instead to treat children primarily as victims, and further calls on the FGS to take action to fully implement their 2012 Action Plans, the 2014 standard operating procedures for the handover of children separated from armed groups, the 2018 Roadmap and the Working Group Conclusions on Children and Armed Conflict in Somalia (S/AC.51/2020/6);

Reiterates its continued concern at the high number of refugees and IDPs, stresses that any evictions should be consistent with relevant national laws and international obligations, welcomes the FGS’ ratification of the African Union Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa (Kampala Convention), stresses the importance the FGS fully implementing its provisions and calls on the FGS to make progress on its commitment to deliver protection, assistance and durable solutions for displaced persons in Somalia, including through the adoption of national legal frameworks for IDPs and refugees;

Recalls its resolution 2417 (2018) and expresses grave concern at the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Somalia and its impact on the people of Somalia, encourages all partners including donors to maintain humanitarian assistance in 2021 and to provide additional assistance to the broader COVID-19 response, strongly condemns indiscriminate attacks and attacks directed against humanitarian and medical personnel and civilian infrastructure, including by Al Shabaab, as well as any misuse or obstruction of humanitarian assistance, reiterates its demand that all parties allow, in accordance with relevant provisions of international law and in line with humanitarian principles, full, safe, rapid and unhindered access for the timely delivery of humanitarian assistance to persons in need across Somalia, and underlines the importance of proper accounting of international humanitarian support;

Reporting

Requests the African Union to keep the Security Council informed every 90 days, through the Secretary-General, on the implementation of AMISOM’s mandate, through no fewer than three, detailed written reports, with the first no later than 1 May 2021 and further requests in this regard, specific reporting on:

progress on joint operations in support of the STP including the use and effectiveness of coordination mechanisms;

progress against revised objectives and functions set out in paragraphs 11 and 12;

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accountability measures taken to address underperformance, including command and control, and conduct and discipline;

measures taken to protect civilians;

equipment review outcomes and use of force assets; and

staffing of the civilian component, and encourages timely reporting to allow for the Council to take into account African Union perspectives on the situation in Somalia;

Requests the FGS to update the Security Council on the status of the endorsement of the STP by 1 May 2021, and to report on its implementation by the end of October 2021;

Requests the Secretary-General to keep the Security Council regularly informed on the implementation of this resolution, in his regular reports requested in paragraph 16 of resolution 2540 (2020) and in this regard further requests the Secretary-General to assess in his regular reports:

implementation of the STP and MAF as referenced in paragraph 1 of this resolution;

implementation of HRDDP; and

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UNSOS support to AMISOM, UNSOM and the Somali security forces;

Reaffirms its intention to further review the configuration of AMISOM;

Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

Who cites this mandate in the budget?

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

What subjects does this mandate have?

What’s in this document?

AMISOM

Objectives and functions

Logistical and financial support

Somalia

Reporting

Table of contents

Who cites this mandate in the budget?