A FORMER prime minister who holds dual Somali-US citizenship has been declared Somalia’s new president.

Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo immediately took the oath of office as the long-chaotic country moved towards its first fully functioning central government in a quarter of a century. Incumbent president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud conceded defeat after two rounds of voting, and Farmajo was declared the new leader. “History was made, we have taken this path to democracy, and now I want to congratulate Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo,” Mohamud said.

The election took place under heavy security amid threats from extremist group al-Shabab, with a security lockdown closing the capital’s international airport.

WHY ARE THE ELECTIONS SUCH A BIG DEAL?

THE Horn of Africa nation is trying to put together its first fully functioning central government in a quarter of a century.

Years of warlord-led conflict and al-Shabab extremist attacks, along with famine, have left the country of about 12 million people largely shattered. Somalis were promised that in 2016 they would see the country’s first democratic poll in nearly 50 years, but the reality was complicated. In 2012, after two decades of political transition, Somalia’s new federal government announced that the country would hold a one-person, one-vote election in 2016.

The previous election was in 1969 when 64 parties took part. Then there was a coup, long years of dictatorship, followed by even longer years of civil conflict, the country ripped apart by clan militias, pirate gangs and Islamist extremists.

But 2016 came and went without the promised election. Instead, a complex system has been devised to select a new legislature, including an upper house for the first time, a new speaker and a new president.

HOW WAS THE VOTE CONDUCTED?

FEARS of al-Shabab attacks have limited the election to the politicians instead of the population at large. The voting was streamed online.

Members of the upper and lower houses of the legislature dropped their ballots into clear boxes at the heavily guarded election venue, a former air force base in the capital of Mogadishu.

WHAT ARE THE SOMALI PEOPLE SAYING?

ACROSS Mogadishu, Somalis gathered around TV screens at cafes and homes, eagerly watching the presidential vote. “I hope they will not choose bribes over the interest of the people,” said Ahmed Hassan, a 26-year-old university student, of the legislators voting.

Sitting among dozens of men in front of a large television screen, he said: “We need an honest leader who can help us move forward.”

Alinur Muhummed, 36, a labourer, criticised the legislators.

“They don’t have any sense of patriotism or nationalism. I don’t believe they will elect a president ... according to his national plan but rather the bribes he paid them ... It’ll take time for Somalia to stand on its feet again.”

WHAT TROUBLE HAS THERE BEEN?

SOMALIA’S instability landed it among the seven Muslim-majority countries affected by US President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration, even though its government has been an increasingly important partner for the US military on counter-terrorism efforts.

In a sign of the dangers that remain in the capital, Mogadishu, two mortar rounds fired by suspected extremists late on Tuesday hit near the election venue.

Separately, residents in a town outside Mogadishu said suspected al-Shabab extremists launched an attack on an African Union military base there.

The two attacks, which were reported around the same time, heightened concerns about the security of an election that al-Shabab extremists have threatened to disrupt with violence.

A resident of Arbacow town, Ahmed Hassan, said heavy gunfire and explosions could be heard as African Union (AU) forces battled the extremists.

The AU mission later said in a tweet that “the militants were repulsed with maximum power and withdrew, with casualties expected”. It said the AU force had no casualties.

The security threat from the al Qaida-linked al-Shabab has helped to delay the election several times since last year.

The home-grown extremist group has lost some of its territory under pressure from the AU force, which numbers more than 20,000, and from Somalia’s security forces.

But al-Shabab continues to carry out deadly attacks in the capital and elsewhere. In late January, at least 11 people were killed and 50 injured after extremist fighters stormed a hotel in Mogadishu.

WHO ARE AL-SHABAB?

AL-SHABAB means The Youth in Arabic.

It became the radical youth wing of Somalia’s now-defunct Union of Islamic Courts, which controlled Mogadishu in 2006, before being forced out by Ethiopian forces. There are reports of foreign jihadists going to Somalia to help al-Shabab, from neighbouring countries, as well as the US and Europe.

It is banned as a terrorist group by both the US and the UK and is believed to have between 7,000 and 9,000 fighters.

Al-Shabab advocates the Saudi-inspired Wahhabi version of Islam, while most Somalis are Sufis.

It has imposed a strict version of Sharia in areas under its control, including stoning to death women accused of adultery and amputating the hands of thieves.

WHAT’S THE REST OF THE WORLD SAYING?

WHILE the international community has pushed Somalia to hold this election as a symbol of strength, including the US pouring in hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years for political and economic recovery, the vote has been marred by reports of widespread corruption.

The legislators voting — 275 members of the lower legislative house and 54 senators — were selected by the country’s powerful, intricate network of clans.

Weeks ago, a joint statement by the United Nations, the US, European Union and others warned of “egregious cases of abuse of the electoral process”.

Examples included violence, intimidation and men taking seats that had been reserved for female candidates, the joint statement said. With reports of votes being sold for up to 30,000 dollars apiece, “this is probably the most expensive election, per vote, in history”, the Mogadishu-based anti-corruption group Marqaati said in a report.

Various Muslim-majority countries seek a friendly Somali government, including Turkey, which has invested heavily in the country. The United Arab Emirates and Qatar are backing different candidates.