It Is beyond doubt that any one who travels from Hargeisa to Borama reaches his/her destination exhausted and awfully fatigued. This is due the rough  road that connects Dilla to Borama which is in pitiable and ravaged state. With the road littered with boulders and pitted with holes, passengers find it hard to conceal their feelings and burst out talking terribly about the road all the way to Borama. It is not uncommon for the travellers to critisize  Awdal people  for their absolute inaction and silence on this significant issue. Shame on Awdal people!!!!. Others mention the government’s weakness and president’s  lack of sentiment to his own region. Shame on him!!. This indeed makes the passengers belonged to Awdal region  feel affronted in every trip, starting hot discussions as to which party to vote for. They have to get prepared for the series of questions posed by non-Awdal passengers along with their vulgar remarks.

Also, passengers have to buy plastic-bags from Dilla for fear of throwing up due to the constant jolting and pouncing and the movement of the wheels in a zig-zag course. Another main recurrent complaint of the passengers after they reach their destination is back pain. In his attempt of swerving to avoid large boulders that appear in the narrow, pumpy, and dusty tract, drivers are mostly affected by the back pain along with headache which makes them chew bunches of Qat to help them ignore the pain. Consequently, this leads to accidents that account the lives of a large number of people and properties.

It was a monotonous incident and people became desperate as a result, convincing themselves that it is beyond the realms of possibility to construct proper roads, let alone asphalt roads. They were under the impression that only well-to-do government could construct roads with smooth, safe surfaces. In addition, successive efforts have been made by local NGOs raising money from the businessmen all of which proved fruitless and created mistrust among them. With a despair and frustration overwhelming the community, any prospect of road construction seemed far beyond reach.

Thanks to ASARDA (Awdal Salal Road Development Association) presided by Prof. Hassan Ali Osman for their vast accomplishment. It was established with the sole aim of improving the road conditions of Awdal with the name of ARNA and later Salal region was included modifying the name into ASARDA. The head of this organization, Prof. Hassan is a man with commitment who came all the way from Saudi Arabia to change the gloomy pictures of Awdal/Salal roads. He is dedicated, trustworthy, and above all, the founder of Amoud University.

Following his nomination, he organized a gathering with the community aiming to persuade the Awdal people to contribute and partake this most esteem project, the road construction. The turn-out to this rally was enormous beyond belief with no one having the slightest expectation of how this particular event would be any different from the preceding ones.  The speeches delivered at the event was so moving and encouraging that people began to realize the importance of collaboration. Also, the messages conveyed that progress would come from a confluence of efforts, generosity, and responsibility for change which should be started from the grassroots. Its slogan (YES WE CAN) was a morale booster and gave confidence to the community highlighting the strength and determination it requires to progress.

Furthermore, part of ASARDA’s responsibility lies in persuading the general public that advance will not proceed without their cooperation and that road construction, in particular, requires substantially more support and donation from the community. In an effort to make those dreams come true, Prof. Hassan and his organization ASARDA, worked tirelessly knocking every door, holding meetings with the different parts of the community such as students in schools, universities, women associations, companies, etc to raise money. With that being done, the contributions received from the community in the region were tremendous, considering the economic constraints that prevailed in Somaliland. It is also worth mentioning, the recent effort of Somaliland government who contributed a considerable amount of money and vowed to complete the road construction which is already underway.

Undoubtedly, the sheer desperation and doubts expressed by the community over the years have been resolved and the assumptions of inaction have been proved wrong by ASARDA.

Despite those efforts, there are more blunt crticisms coming from a number of Awdallite diaspora who accuse ASARDA for corruption and fund mismanagement. It is disheartening for us, the new generation of this region, to hear such an unpatriotic critisism and remarks. Some argue that there are motives behind this project and would rather construct the road between Borama and Lughaya  than Amoud-Borama. Others consider that this project doesn’t reflect the needs of the community with other more important projects were top in the priority list. Without a doubt, Awdal region lacks basic development and the country is destitute, unable to finance pressing public needs.

But a journey of thousand miles starts with a single step, a step which lays the foundation of a progress. The first concrete foot-step into future has been wholeheartedly taken by ASARDA and should be congratulated. Yet, their admirable efforts remains not only unrecognized but criticized as well by many awdallites!! Unfair isn’t it?. We need role models not critics.

However, we, the new generation of Awdal, are fortunate to have a role model, a commited and honest individuals, a group of people who are bold enough to stand up and say it is time for change and genuinely contribute their time and energy. We came to realize that desirable goals are within our reach –  only if we can unite behind a broad and commonly understood objectives.

In a nutshell, today’s most pressing domestic challenge is improving Awdal roads, regardless of the starting point. In dealing with this challenge, one of the greatest potential rewards lies in teamwork, accountibility and contribution.  Therefore, I urge Awdallite in the diaspora to feel the need to get enthusiastically involved in this imperative project. Unity is of the essence in order for Awdal progress to spark.  YES WE CAN

Dr. Mustafe Mohamed Ahm

Amoud Medical School Graduate

Borama, Awdal Region ( mustapha_dr@hotmail.com)