Somalia has unveiled a national strategy designed to counter improvised explosive devices (IEDs), the weapon of choice for terror group al-Shabaab.
The effort has been in the works since 2023, when experts conducted a baseline assessment of the country’s C-IED capabilities. The strategy, announced at a September 2025 event in Mogadishu, provides a framework for adding more explosive ordnance disposal units to the Somali National Army and improving interagency collaboration.
“This is a historic milestone for our country. Never before have we had a unified, nationally owned framework to address the IED threat,” said Awes Hagi Yusuf Ahmed, Somalia’s national security advisor. “This strategy represents a decisive shift from reactive measures to a proactive, intelligence-led approach anchored in national ownership.”
The strategy will help Somali officials quickly implement new laws and regulations, particularly those needed to control access to chemicals used in making bombs. It will establish a national electronic tracking system for materials used in bombs.
It also calls for a national C-IED center and strategies to improve border security, disrupt terrorist financial networks and educate the public about the threat.
“This is not a military effort alone,” Somalia’s Defence Minister Ahmed Moallim Fiqi said. “It is a whole-of-government and whole-of-society mission to safeguard Somali lives and secure our future.”
Explosives have taken a heavy toll on the nation. In 2024, more than 600 IED blasts killed or injured more than 1,400 people. In the past decade, 61% of the victims were Somali civilians, according to the group Action on Armed Violence. Somalia was the fifth-most-affected country by IEDs globally in 2024.
The United Nations has led the way in helping Somalia improve its C-IED expertise. The U.N. Mine Action Service trained and equipped 61 Somali explosive ordnance disposal teams and led train-the-trainer courses to ensure that the knowledge is spread throughout the military. The service also trained 21 disposal teams in the Somali Police Force.