Somaliland has existed in enforced isolation for more than three decades. Since 1991, it has functioned as a stable democracy, yet it remains unrecognised and is still officially treated as part of Somalia.
That policy has consequences. After 35 years, those consequences demand more than acknowledgment.
Somaliland should be compensated.
Not as charity. Not as goodwill. As a matter of accountability.
The Cost of Exclusion
Somaliland has been excluded from the very systems that enable development. No formal access to international financial institutions. Limited ability to secure large-scale investment. No standing in the global economic order. At the same time, it has been forced to carry the international reputation of Somalia: piracy, terrorism, and instability. All of it, despite charting a markedly different path.
It bears the stigma. It is denied the support.
Somaliland's low Human Development Index (HDI) is often cited as a reason for caution. That reading is backwards. The low HDI is not a warning sign about Somaliland. It is evidence of the damage caused by prolonged exclusion.
You cannot deny a society access to global systems for 35 years and then point to its underdevelopment as justification for continued denial.
The African Union Knew
Even the African Union recognised this contradiction. Its 2005 fact-finding mission concluded that Somaliland's lack of recognition was directly hindering its development and limiting its engagement with the international community.
That was two decades ago. Nothing changed.
The cost has only compounded since. By any reasonable estimate, the cumulative loss runs into the tens of billions of dollars.
From Neglect to Negligence
When a policy is known to cause harm and is maintained regardless, it is no longer neutral. It is systemic negligence.
If harm has been sustained, who takes responsibility?
Recognition is necessary. But it is not enough on its own. It addresses legal status. It does not repair decades of lost opportunity.
Compensation must be part of the solution.
What Compensation Looks Like
Targeted development financing. Preferential access to international lending. Infrastructure investment packages. Accelerated integration into global institutions. The principle is simple: correct the imbalance created by long-term exclusion.
Critics will call this unrealistic. But continuing a policy that has demonstrably held back a functioning society is far harder to defend.
The Israeli Recognition Factor
A lot of Arabs and Muslims are upset that Somaliland recognised Israel. Their outrage reveals something important: they have no idea how much damage the lack of recognition has already inflicted on Somaliland. Damage caused primarily by Muslim, Arab, and African states. They do not understand how much they have already harmed Somaliland. And then they are surprised when Somaliland does something about it.
None of these countries would take a comparable hit to their own development for Palestine. Many of them deny Somaliland recognition while advocating for self-determination for Palestine. That is not principled. It is hypocrisy.
Somaliland is keen to develop real economic ties with Israel. Azerbaijan and Albania, both Muslim-majority countries, maintain strong commercial relationships with Israel, with trade volumes reaching $600 to $800 million. Somaliland wants the same. Arabs seem to assume Somaliland will be bound by their slow, paper-only normalisation. Somaliland is far more similar to Azerbaijan and Albania than to them.
They should also see the opportunity they are missing. Somaliland could be the bridge connecting the Arab world to Ethiopia, Africa, and Israel. Instead, the Arab world wants another Somalia, a tool in the hands of Egypt. Somaliland is offering partnership. The question is whether they are smart enough to take it.
Beyond Patience
After 35 years, this is not about patience. It is not about process.
It is about responsibility.
Somaliland does not just deserve recognition. It deserves repair.