Quarterly Progress and Performance Report FY 2016 Q1

The project's primary objective is to strengthen the Federal Government of Somalia's (FGS) institutions, particularly the Parliament, to ensure that they are able to function effectively and make informed decisions. In the first quarter of FY 2016, the project provided capacity building support to the FGS, focusing on legislative drafting and regulatory reform. The project team worked with the Federal Parliament to pass several key bills, including the Foreign Investment Bill, the Procurement Bill, the Anti-Money Laundering and Financing Terrorism Bill, and the Media Bill. Additionally, the project provided skills development to Parliament members on asset management policy, office administration, and legislative drafting. The project's strategy for the second quarter of FY 2016 is to continue strengthening Somalia's deliberative bodies at both federal and regional levels. This will involve working with Parliamentary committees on legislative drafting, amending, advocacy, and civic engagement/constituency outreach in all regions of Somalia. In terms of implementation, the project has made significant progress in Puntland, where it has been working with local staff to conduct skills development programming, public consultations, and finalize Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with key partner institutions. However, the project's work in Puntland has been delayed due to political tensions and misinformation surrounding the closure of the Garowe Airport. In Somaliland, the project is working with the Somaliland National Electoral Commission (NEC) to implement voter education grants for civil society organizations (CSOs). The project is also providing capacity building support to the NEC to ensure that it is able to conduct free and fair elections. In Mogadishu, the project is providing civic engagement capacity building support to the National Consultative Forum (NCF), which is working to find an alternative to the elections plan laid out in Vision 2016. The project is also working with the Technical Support Team (TST) members responsible for the NCF on a communications strategy and civic outreach planning. Overall, the project has made significant progress in the first quarter of FY 2016, with a focus on legislative drafting, regulatory reform, and capacity building for Somalia's institutions. The project's strategy for the second quarter is to continue strengthening Somalia's deliberative bodies and working with key stakeholders to ensure that the country's institutions are able to function effectively. The project's work in Puntland has been delayed due to political tensions and misinformation surrounding the closure of the Garowe Airport. However, the project has been able to utilize local staff to conduct skills development programming, public consultations, and finalize MoUs with key partner institutions. In Somaliland, the project is working with the NEC to implement voter education grants for CSOs. The project is also providing capacity building support to the NEC to ensure that it is able to conduct free and fair elections.