Asha Gelle Dirie (, ; born 1966) is a
Somali politician and civil society activist. From 2005 to 2012, she served as the
Ministry of Women Development and Family Affairs of the
Government of Puntland. Dirie is also the founder and Executive Director of The Asha Gelle Foundation (TAG Foundation). Also she served as the Chairperson of the federal
Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission between 2014 and 2015.
Personal life
Dirie was born in 1966 in
Galkayo, the capital of the north-central
Mudug
Mudug () is an administrative region ('' gobol'') in north-central Somalia. The population of Mudug is 131,455 as of 2005.
Overview
Physiographically, Mudug is bordered to the west by Ethiopia, to the north and south by the Somali regions of Nu ...
region of
Somalia
Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...
.
She hails from the
Omar Mohamoud sub-clan of the
Majeerteen Harti Darod
The Darod (, ) is a Somali clan. The forefather of this clan is Sheikh Abdirahman bin Isma'il al-Jabarti, more commonly known as Darod. The clan primarily settles the apex of the Horn of Africa and its peripheries, the Somali hinterlands adjacent ...
.
For her post-secondary education, Dirie earned a degree from the
Somali National University's
Lafoole College of Education in
Mogadishu
Mogadishu, locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Ocean for millennia and has ...
.
Career
Early career
Upon graduation, Dirie initially served as a teacher in the national capital.
From 1984 to 1988, she worked for Somali Women Education. She later founded Somali Women Concerns in 1988, a local NGO. The organization used to carry out work in Mogadishu and
Kismayo, and still has a presence in
Puntland
Puntland is an autonomous state that considers itself to be part of Somalia, despite not accepting the legitimacy of Somalia's current governing administration. It was formed in 1998, and was a federal member state of Somalia from its fou ...
's major cities. Dirie also chaired We Are Women Activists (WAWA).
Puntland government
From 1998 to 2005, Dirie was a Member of the
House of Representatives of Puntland. She represented the Mudug region constituency.
Between 2005 and 2012,
Dirie also served as the Minister of Women Development and Family Affairs of Puntland and was replaced by Halima Hassan Haji Osman.
The ministry grew considerably under her tenure, transforming into a robust governmental entity. In this capacity, she was among the 2011 jury members of the Puntland Education Fund, a state-run scholarship reward system for outstanding local students.
TAG Foundation
Additionally, Dirie is the founder and Executive Director of The Asha Gelle Foundation (TAG Foundation), a Puntland-based NGO.
Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission
In May 2014, Dirie was appointed to the new
Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission.
Gelle serves as the government committee's Chairperson.
The five-member executive body is tasked with overseeing reform of the
Provisional Federal Constitution (PFC).
Puntland President
welcomed the development, expressing confidence in the appointees and noting that Dirie was Puntland's representative on the panel.
On 19 June 2014, the
Federal Parliament approved the government committee, with 139 MPs voting in favor, 9 voting against, and 10 abstaining.
On 16 July 2014, the independent Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission held its inaugural meeting in Mogadishu. The gathering was attended by a number of senior government officials, including President
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (Somali language, Somali: ''Xasan Sheekh Maxamuud''; ; born 29 November 1955) is a Somali politician serving as the president of Somalia since 15 May 2022. He previously held the office from 2012 to 2017.
Hassan was previo ...
. Gelle and other panel members therein discussed various federal matters, among which were constitutional amendment procedures, public consultation, and the committee's duty protocols.
In March 2015, the Constitutional Review Commission completed the first phase of its constitutional review, with the second phase slated to begin shortly afterwards. According to Chairperson Gelle, the first phase involved ascertaining any technical or political uncertainties in the Provision Federal Constitution. Among these were whether the country should have a Prime Minister or a Deputy President, and which city should serve as the national capital. Gelle estimated that around 85% of the constitutional impasses were technical in nature, while the remainder were political.
On 6 May 2015, Gelle stepped down as the Chairperson of the Constitutional Review and Implementation Commission. She cited a lack of sufficient time left for the panel to complete its allotted tasks as the main reason for her resignation. Gelle suggested that some committee members had been working too slowly to meet the deadline, and also indicated that there was a dearth of funds necessary to manage the commission's affairs independently.
References
External links
TAG Foundation
{{Authority control
1966 births
Living people
Ethnic Somali people
People from Galkayo
Government ministers of Puntland
Somalian Muslims
Somali National University alumni
Members of the Puntland Parliament