Dr. Mohamed Osman pledges peace, education programs in new UN UPEACE role

Somalia’s new United Nations University for Peace (UPEACE) Special Representative and Goodwill Ambassador Dr. Mohamed Osman Mohamoud has outlined his mission to expand peace and education while strengthening institutions to ensure future generations inherit stability rather than conflict.

Dr. Osman, whose appointment was formally confirmed on Monday, also shared plans to build on more than two decades of activism and leadership to position higher education as a cornerstone of Somalia’s recovery.

He argues that peace cannot be sustained by disarmament alone, but must also be anchored in schools, governance systems, and human rights protections.

“Peace has a price. Somalia has paid more than most. But peace also has a maintenance cost—it requires constant investment of resources, ideas, and courage,” he said after his appointment.

Dr. Osman believes Somalia’s transformation will come from replacing cycles of violence with cycles of knowledge.

As Special Representative, he intends to scale up UPEACE’s academic programs in Somalia, expanding access to postgraduate education that trains the very leaders tasked with rebuilding the state.

Since 2018, UPEACE Somalia has graduated more than 400 Master’s and Ph.D. students—including President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud—making it the largest postgraduate institution operating in an active conflict zone.

More than 60 percent of its alumni now serve in government across the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, drafting laws, managing elections, and shaping foreign policy.

“This is evidence that education can be Somalia’s strongest weapon for peace,” Dr. Osman noted.

From street activism to diplomacy

Dr. Osman’s peace journey has been deeply personal. In 1998, he lost his father, also a peace activist, to the violence that engulfed Somalia.

Instead of retreating, he inherited his father’s mission, beginning with grassroots activism in Mogadishu where he urged young men to trade weapons for books and helped gather children into classrooms.

His early organizing evolved into national and international service. He went on to advise Somali presidents, represent the country in global forums, and pioneer innovative approaches to recovery.

In 2010, he founded the Sadar Development and Resilience Institute, which has since grown into the largest Somali-led policy institute.

The organization connects local communities to international climate finance, supports agricultural development, and develops resilience models linking grassroots survival to national policies.

Building institutions for the future

Beyond academia and research, Dr. Osman has played a central role in Somalia’s institutional rebirth.

In July 2025, he became the country’s first National Human Rights Commissioner, creating an independent body to monitor and protect rights for the first time since independence.

As National Economic Advisor in the early 2010s, he helped align Somalia’s budget with international standards and contributed to debt relief efforts that restored credibility with financial institutions.

He was also part of Somalia’s delegation negotiating entry into the East African Community (EAC), a symbolic return to regional integration.

Regionally and globally, he has promoted “track-two” diplomacy, bringing together governments, civil society, and faith institutions to resolve conflicts too complex for official negotiations.