Somaliland Armed Forces

Not to be confused with Somali Armed Forces.
Somaliland Armed Forces
Ciidamada qalabka sida ee Soomaaliland (Somali)
Somaliland Armed Forces emblem
Somaliland Armed Forces flag
Founded1993; 31 years ago (1993)
Service branches

Security and War time only:
Somaliland Police Force
Somaliland Immigration and Border Control

Guarding prisons only:
Somaliland Custodial Corps
HeadquartersHargeisa, Somaliland
Leadership
Commander-in-chief Muse Bihi Abdi
Minister of DefenceDr Rooble Abdi cilmi
Chief of Staff Major general Nuh Ismail Tani
Personnel
Fit for
military service		300,000, age 15–49
Reaching military
age annually		500,000
Active personnel8,000–13,000 est.[1][2]
Expenditure
Budget$115 million (2019)[3]
Percent of GDP0.6%
Industry
Foreign suppliers United Kingdom
 Yemen
 Ethiopia
 European Union
Related articles
HistoryMilitary history of Somaliland
RanksMilitary ranks of Somaliland

The Somaliland National Armed Forces (Somali: Ciidamada Qalabka Sida ee Soomaaliland; Arabic: القوات المسلحة الصوماليلاندية, romanized: alquaat almusalahat alsuwmalilandia) are the military services of the Republic of Somaliland. The Somaliland National Armed Forces consist of the Somaliland National Army, the Somaliland Coast Guard, the Somaliland Police Force, the Somaliland Custodial Corps, the Somaliland Immigration and Border Control and the Somaliland Fire Brigade. There is no air force.[4] The Armed Forces is under the command of President Muse Bihi Abdi, who is the Commander-in-chief. Minister of Defence Dr. Rooble Muuse Abdi is the designated minister that oversees the armed forces.[5]

Somaliland has 45 T-54/55 tanks and, 20 armoured fighting vehicles, 50 rocket projectors, and has about 55+ pieces of artillery in its national army.

The total strength of the Somaliland armed forces in recent estimates have put the number of active duty personnel between 8,000 and 13,000.[6][7] There are fewer than 9,000 men and women working for the Somaliland police force overall. The Special Police Unit (SPU), which protects foreign organizations and individuals who work for them, and the Rapid Response Units (RRU), which are specialized counterterrorism forces, are both housed inside the police force. Somaliland has 7 defender class boats and 1 coast guard vessels in its coast guard, and The coast guard of Somaliland numbers a few hundred in personnel.[8]

Somaliland spends $115 million budget on its armed forces, its largest government expenditure.[3] Due to a United Nations arms embargo on Somalia, the state is not allowed to procure weapons.[9]

  1. ^ Horton, Micheal (November 2019). "How Somaliland Combats al-Shabaab". CTC Sentinel. 12 (10): 24. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  2. ^ "Building capability and accountability within the Somaliland army and coastguard". Adam Smith International. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
  3. ^ a b Rubin, Michael (7 March 2019). "Somaliland – Key to Winning America's Longest War". www.realcleardefense.com. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference indepth was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "The Minister of Defense JSL has officially taken over the position of that ministry". Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  6. ^ Horton, Micheal (November 2019). "How Somaliland Combats al-Shabaab". CTC Sentinel. 12 (10): 24. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  7. ^ "Building capability and accountability within the Somaliland army and coastguard". Adam Smith International. Retrieved 2024-10-29.
  8. ^ Horton, Micheal (November 2019). "How Somaliland Combats al-Shabaab". CTC Sentinel. 12 (10): 24. Archived from the original on 27 March 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
  9. ^ Hussein, Abdi (August 13, 2011). "Somalilands Military Is A Shadow of the Past". SomaliaReport. Retrieved August 13, 2011.