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| Motto: None | |||||
| Anthem: Somalian National Anthem | |||||
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| Capital | Garowe |
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| Largest city | |||||
| Official languages | Somali | ||||
| Government | • Mohamud Muse Hersi • Hasan Dahir |
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| Independence - Declared - Recognition |
From Somalia 1998 none |
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| Area • Total • Water (%) |
~250,000 km² (not ranked) Negl. |
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| Population • 2000 est. • [[As of |]] census • Density |
2,650,000 (not ranked) ~5/km² (not ranked) |
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| GDP (PPP) • Total • Per capita |
- estimate n/a (not ranked) n/a (not ranked) |
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| HDI ({{{HDI_year}}}) | {{{HDI}}} ({{{HDI_rank}}}) – {{{HDI_category}}} | ||||
| Currency | Somali shilling (SOS) |
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| Time zone • Summer (DST) |
MSK (UTC+3) not observed (UTC+3) |
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| Internet TLD | .so | ||||
| Calling code | +252 (Somalia) |
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Puntland is a region in northeastern Somalia, centered around Garowe (Nugaal region), whose leaders in 1998 declared it to be an autonomous state. The current government apparently sees the move as an attempt to reconstitute Somalia as a federative republic. Unlike neighbouring Somaliland, it does not seek outright independence from Somalia. The name is derived from the Land of Punt mentioned by ancient Egyptian sources, which is believed by some to have existed in what is now Somalia.
Puntland considered itself as an autonomous state within Somalia. In 1969, when Somalia's government was toppled in a coup d'état, years of war and chaos followed. An unsuccessful invasion of Ethiopia followed the Soviet Union's change of support from Somalia to Ethiopia, caused by the rise of a pro-Soviet government in Ethiopia. Left without Soviet support, Somalia turned to the United States, which allowed Somalia's self-proclaimed president, Siad Barre, to stay in power through the end of the Cold War in 1991. When the Soviet Union collapsed, American support for the Somali government was withdrawn, and Barre was overthrown.
Following these events, Somalis remained without a strong government, with constant wars ravaging the southern part of Somalia. These events led to the 1991 secession of Somaliland, which in 1960 had enjoyed a few days of independence. Anarchy continued throughout the land, prompting a United Nations peacekeeping force to be sent to war-torn Somalia. The relief effort ended however on March 3, 1995, after the Battle of Mogadishu when American troops were shot down and massacred.
Somalia remained unstable and, in 1998, Puntland declared autonomy under the presidency of Abdullahi Yusuf (deputy president of Somali Salvation Democratic Front), as a nation with clan confederation as one of its top priorities. Since 1998, Puntland has been in territorial disputes with Somaliland over the Sool and Sanaag regions.
Unlike the other self-declared state of Somaliland, Puntland is not trying to get international recognition to be a nation. It wants to be a federal division in a united Somalia that is a federal republic.
Puntland began experiencing political turmoil in 2001 when President Ahmed wanted his term to be lengthened. Ahmed and Jama Ali Jama fought for control of the country, which Ahmed won in 2002. Ahmed served as president until October 2004 when he was elected President of Somalia. He was succeeded by Muhammad Abdi Hashi who served until January 2005 when he was defeated for reelection by Parliament, which elected General Mohamud Muse Hersi "Adde". In December 2004, Puntland sustained serious damage during the tsunami following the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake. The international community has been accused of ignoring Puntland and other African areas where the tsunami struck.
On an economic basis, under a recent agreement made by the newly elected Mohamud Muse Hersi and Australian mining and exploration company, Range Resources, was granted a 50.1% interest in the sole and exclusive rights to all mineral and hydrocarbon exploration and development in the Somali state for the purposes of joint ventures and farm-in agreements with several major companies, thus providing investment benefits to the people of Puntland. The mineral potential of Puntland has yet to be identified, however it is believed that commercially viable oil (500 million barrels recoverable have been discovered to date) and gas, along with mineral potentials in uranium, iron ore and coal are believed to be contained in the 212,000 Square-Kilometre region. This recent agreement is seen as positive sign for the developmental progress of the state.
Puntland occupies the following Regions of Somalia:
| Regions of Somalia | |
|---|---|
| Awdal | Bakool | Banaadir | Bari | Bay | Galguduud | Gedo | Hiiraan | Jubbada Dhexe | Jubbada Hoose | Mudug | Nugaal | Saaxil |Sanaag |Shabeellaha Dhexe | Shabeellaha Hoose | Sool | Togdheer | Woqooyi Galbeed | |
| Puntland | Somaliland | Southwestern Somalia | |