Mogadishu (Somalia Today) — Somalia’s federal government has decided to form a new Jubaland administration headquartered in Garbaharey after reconciliation talks in Kismayo between President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and regional leader Ahmed Mohamed Islam “Madobe” collapsed without progress.
The move marks a decisive shift in Mogadishu’s strategy toward the southern region. It follows two high-level meetings at Villa Somalia on Monday, during which officials approved what insiders described as the government’s “Plan B.”
Government activates ‘Plan B’
President Hassan told ministers and lawmakers that the “Jubaland issue now rests fully with the federal government,” describing himself as an “elder” while delegating operational responsibility to Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre.
According to officials who attended the meeting, the president made clear that the Kismayo talks had reached a dead end and that the government could not accept “a regional authority operating outside the federal constitution.”
Later on Monday, Prime Minister Barre convened another meeting with lawmakers and ministers from Jubaland’s Gedo region to discuss the technical framework for the new administration.
The planned interim government will be based in Garbaharey, a town long disputed between federal and regional authorities but now largely under federal control.
“The message was firm. The talks failed, and the state cannot be led through unconstitutional arrangements,” one official familiar with the meeting told Somalia Today.
The decision follows negotiations in Kismayo that broke down on Sunday night. Both sides refused to compromise: President Hassan demanded that Madobe renounce his self-declared re-election, while Madobe insisted that Mogadishu first recognize his mandate.
Mediation efforts led by a Kenyan delegation also faltered. The envoys left Kismayo for Nairobi on Sunday, concluding that neither side was ready to compromise, according to diplomatic sources.
The failed talks highlighted the widening rift between the federal government and one of its most influential regional leaders.
Garbaharey: Political Nucleus
Federal officials say the government now plans to establish a transitional administration in Garbaharey quickly, aiming to unify the Gedo region under a single federal framework after years of political friction.
In recent months, federal forces have consolidated control over key districts in Gedo, supported by the dominant Marehan clan, which has long backed the Mogadishu government. Analysts say this gives the government a rare opportunity to reassert its authority in southern Somalia.
“The government appears determined to restore constitutional order in Jubaland after years of paralysis,” said Ahmed Abdi, a political observer in Mogadishu.
Still, tensions are expected to rise. Jubaland’s Kismayo-based authorities are likely to reject any parallel administration, which could potentially deepen divisions within Somalia’s fragile federal system.
President Hassan has repeatedly vowed not to tolerate regional governments formed outside the constitutional framework. On Monday evening, he reportedly instructed his cabinet to “begin the process of establishing the new Jubaland immediately.”
“The era of unconstitutional administrations is over,” he was quoted as saying.
The coming weeks will test Mogadishu’s ability to carry out the plan without provoking new instability. For now, the government appears determined to move forward, presenting the initiative as a constitutional correction rather than a political confrontation.
