Sunday, June 22, 2025-(HAN)
Hargeisa, Somaliland’s national exams for high school and 8th-grade students are currently underway in parts of eastern Sanaag region — areas that are officially under the administration of Puntland.
This move directly defies a recent directive from the Governor of Sanaag in Puntland, who ordered a halt to the administration of Somaliland’s exams in territories controlled by Puntland.
The examination centers are being tightly guarded by armed personnel from the eastern Sanaag region. Local politicians and officials from Somaliland, originally from the region, reportedly played a significant role in facilitating the exams’ administration in these contested areas.
Puntland authorities have failed in their attempts to stop the exams. Yesterday, an effort to disrupt the process in the Badhan district was unsuccessful, leading to tensions and ultimately prompting Puntland to withdraw from its efforts to intervene.
Puntland’s Minister of Education, Fuaad Abshir Adeer, has previously accused certain politicians and officials from Sanaag of being responsible for enabling Somaliland to conduct exams in schools located in Sanaag and Haylaan regions.
Meanwhile, the Speaker of Puntland’s Parliament, Abdirizak Ahemed Qaraaje, has made an urgent visit to Dhahar in the Haylaan region. His visit comes as the 56th parliamentary session continues in Garowe.
As Puntland’s top representative for the Sanaag and Haylaan regions, his trip is seen as part of a broader effort to halt Somaliland’s educational activities in these contested areas.
