CITIZENSHIP AND STATELESSNESS IN THE HORN OF AFRICA \Y Somali passports are issued in Mogadishu they have been technically upgraded, and some other cities, and in some they are accepted embassies. as valid travel documents Although in only a limited number of countries, due to concerns about the process by which they are issued. '8' Somaliland uses different documents for proof of identity, all ultimately depending on a process of verification of clan membership by an akil (also transliterated as caaqil), the heads of the smallest units of the Somali clan system.'®? The Somaliland Citizenship Law provides for issue of a certificate of citizenship (required for issue of a passport) that authorises this role, although there is no implementing decree.'83 Different municipalities, including Hargeisa (the capital) issue municipal identity documents confirming residence and identity, which also depend on verification of identity by an akil.'®4 In 2015, the president of Somaliland appointed a steering committee and technical task force (SCATFO) to oversee the creation of a biometric national population register and the issue of national identity cards to all citizens over the age of 15, implemented by the ministry of the interior.'®° National identity cards are being issued in accordance with this project, and are increasingly required to access services. '®° Somaliland issues its own passports, upgraded in 2014,'8” though they are accepted as travel documents only by Ethiopia. However, since Somalilanders are regarded as “Somali” by the government of Somalia, Somalilanders may also be able to obtain a Somalia passport.'® Voter registration In Ethiopia and Somaliland, which have not had a national identity card until recently, voter registration cards have also functioned in the past as identity cards. Somaliland has engaged in multiple biometric registration processes (including through iris scans) to establish its electoral register — processes that in practice have established the distinction between Somalilander and foreigner.'®? In Djibouti, the 181 “Documents in Somalia and Sudan”, Landinfo (Country of Origin Information Centre), Oslo, 5 January 2009 hitp://citizenshiprightsafrica.org/documents-insomalia-and-sudan/ 182 Anna C. Rader, ‘Verification and Legibility in Somaliland’s Identity Architecture’ (PhD, University of London, School of Oriental and African Studies, 2016), 86, 111, https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/23653/. 183 Somaliland Citizenship Law 2002, sec.3 : “The confirmation of proof of Somaliland citizenship may be obtained by an individual on the production of: a) A declaration relating to the individual made at a court by the Ministry of Internal Affairs registered Akil (clan chief) of the individual’s community. b) The form designed for the purpose by the Citizenship Office and signed by the individual.” 184 Rader, ‘Verification and Legibility in Somaliland’s Identity Architecture’, 112-13. 185 "MegaMatcher Accelerator Case Study: Somaliland National ID Project”, Neurotechnology, 2015 https://download.neurotechnology.com/CaseStudy Somaliland National ID_Project.pdf 186 Interview, Khadar Mohamed Ahmed, Hargeisa University Legal Clinic, 19 March 2021. 187 Adam Vrankulj, “Somaliland set to replace handwritten passports with electronic documents in 2014”, Biometric Update, 1 November 2013 https://www.biometricupdate.com/201311/somaliland-set-to-replace-handwritten-passports-with-electronic-documents-in-2014. 188 Somalia: Identity documents, including national ID cards, passports and driver's licences, and the requirements and procedures to obtain them; percentage of the population that holds some form of identity document; whether such documents are accepted elsewhere (2018-July 2020), SOM200235.E, Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ottawa, 28 August 2020 https://irb-cisr.gc.ca/en/countryinformation/rir/pages/index.aspx ?doc=458174&pls=1 . 189 Marie-Luise Schueller and Michael Walls, “Report by International Observers on the 2016 Voter Registration Process in Somaliland”, Progressio, March 2017 https://www.progressio.org.uk/sites/progressio.org.uk/files/progressio voter registration process in somaliland final 170317. pdf; Anna C. Rader, ‘Politiques de la reconnaissance et de l’origine contrdlée : la construction du Somaliland a travers ses cartes d’électeurs’, Politique africaine 144 (2016): 51-71. UNHCR — December 2021