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Somali children have
been forced to bear the brunt of an endless civil war that has plagued
the Horn of Africa nation for more than two decades now.
They have no option due to the lack of well-paying jobs that will in turn offer a better livelihood for them forcing thousands mainly those aged between the ages of 13 to 18 to either join the Somali transitional government and be recruited as soldiers or either join the Al-Shabaab group who are waging an all-out war against the Somali government.
In her visit to Mogadishu on Wednesday Radhika Coomaraswamy, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, secured a commitment from the President and Prime Minister of Somalia to enter a process to end the recruitment and use of children by the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) in Mogadishu.
The UN envoy said that the Completion of an action plan will ensure that the TFG forces are child-free, and allow the United Nations to remove the Government from the 'list of shame' of parties that commit this grave violation against children.
Children constitute the largest percentage of soldiers on the Somali national army as well as the Al-Shabaab and in all the blasts that have taken place in Somalia were all committed by young children.
Halima Ali is a mother of seven and says that finding a better livelihood in Somalia for the Somali youths at this stage has proved difficult bearing in mind that the children either choose either side of the armed groups in Somalia.
Until the warring factions seize fighting, Somali children will continue to bear the brunt of the civil war.