British Somalis
Encyclopedia
Somalis in the United Kingdom include British citizens
and residents born in, or with ancestors from, Somalia
. It is thought that the United Kingdom
is home to the largest Somali
community in Europe
, with 43,532 Somali-born residents recorded by the 2001 Census
, and an estimated 108,000 Somali-born immigrants
residing the UK in the year to March 2010 according to the Office for National Statistics
.
The earliest Somali immigrants in the UK were seamen and merchants who arrived in the 19th century. A second small group came during the Second World War
with the Royal Navy
, and stayed in search of employment. During the 1980s and 1990s, the civil war
in Somalia lead to a large number of Somali immigrants, comprising the majority of the current Somali population in the UK.
The Somali community represents one of the largest Muslim groups in the UK
. While faced with several social challenges, community members include notable sports figures, filmmakers and local politicians. It has also established business networks and media organisations.
, through its involvement in the British Somaliland
protectorate
. This link has given rise to a long tradition of Somali
migration to the UK. Mobility has played an important part in Somali culture. The first Somali immigrants were seamen and merchant
s who settled in port cities in the late 19th century, mainly in Cardiff
, Liverpool
and London
. Many of these early sailors came from British Somaliland and worked in the thriving docks, whilst living in boarding houses run by other Somalis.
A second, small group came during the Second World War
with the Royal Navy
and stayed in search of employment. Most of these seamen considered their stay in the UK as temporary and had left their families behind. Until the 1950s, Somali migrants were legally restricted to working in the shipping industry, were paid at rates 25 percent below the pay of native British workers, and forced to settle only in towns and cities that were centres of shipping. In 1953, there were about 600 Somalis living in the UK. When the British merchant navy
started to wind down in the 1950s, many of these migrants moved to industrial cities such as Birmingham
, Sheffield
and Manchester
, where labour was in great demand. By the 1960s, there were still only a few Somali women in the UK. After the expansion in British industry, Somali men brought over their wives and families. Somali women subsequently began establishing community organisations in the cities where they resided, some of which still exist to this day. In the 1960s and 1970s, Somali students from British Somaliland also came to study in the UK. Some chose to remain in Britain, while others returned to Somalia after graduating.
in Somalia lead to a large number of Somali immigrants, comprising the majority of the current Somali population in the UK. During the period 1988 to 1994, the favoured destination of people fleeing the civil war was Scandinavia
, but by 1999 53 percent of Somali asylum applications in Europe were made in the UK. Many of these asylum seekers had fled from neighbouring countries such as Ethiopia before migrating to the UK. Many of the refugees were not men, but women and children whose men had either been killed or had stayed in Somalia to fight, changing the Somali settlement from one of single seamen to that of refugee communities. Between 1985 and 2006, Somalis figured among the top ten largest country of origin groups of people seeking asylum
in the UK. In the late 1980s, most of these early migrants were granted refugee
status, while those arriving later in the 1990s more often obtained temporary status.
, Sweden
and Denmark
. An academic article published in 2010 suggests that, since 2000, between 10,000 and 20,000 Somalis in the Netherlands
have moved to the UK. The driving forces behind this secondary migration included: a desire to reunite with family and friends; a rise in Dutch opposition to Muslim immigration; Somali opposition to housing policies which forced them to live scattered in small groups all over various cities rather than in a larger agglomerated community; a restrictive socio-economic environment which, among other things, made it difficult for new arrivals to find work; and the comparative ease of starting a business and acquiring the means to get off social welfare in the UK. Research into this relocation also suggests that some Somali migrants in the Netherlands did not intend to end up there as a final destination. Their journeys may have been interrupted in the Netherlands, or they may have had little choice about their destination. As a result, some secondary migration can be seen in the context of the desire to complete an intended migration to the UK.
are not detailed enough to include a Somali category (though the census does have a 'write in' response option for people who identify themselves as Somali) and because of a lack of research on this subject. It is thought that the UK is home to the largest Somali community in Europe
, however. The census does record respondents' country of birth, and 43,532 Somali-born residents were enumerated by the 2001 Census
. The Office for National Statistics
estimates that 108,000 Somali-born immigrants were resident in the UK in the year to March 2010. Media organisations report that experts estimate that around 95,000 Somalis may now live in the UK, with Somali community organisations putting the figure at 90,000 residents. However, these estimates are complicated by the exchange of Somalis both arriving in the UK and those deciding to return to Somalia or elsewhere.
As with estimates of the total Somali population in the UK, estimates by city vary significantly between sources. This problem is party the result of defining "Somali", with some sources estimating the Somali-born population only, and others estimating the size of the ethnic Somali community, including second and subsequent-generation British Somalis. The 2001 census found that 33,838 Somali-born people were resident in London. Other sources suggest that Cardiff has the highest number of people of Somali heritage anywhere in the UK, though the number of Somali-born immigrants there is low. The table on the right summarises census data and other estimates of the Somali population in a number of British cities.
is the mother tongue of the Somali people, and the official language of Somalia. It is a member of the Cushitic
branch of the Afro-Asiatic
language family. Some Somalis in the UK also speak Arabic
, another Afro-Asiatic tongue and the other official language of Somalia, with about 15 percent of Somalis in England
being completely fluent in it according to a 2006 report by the Foreign Policy Centre
. Some Somalis who have arrived in the UK via a secondary migration from other European countries do not speak their mother-tongue or English very well, and consequently face challenges integrating into both the Somali and British communities.
s, the majority belonging to the Sunni
branch of Islam
and the Shafi`i school of Islamic jurisprudence. Somalis constitute one of the largest Muslim groups in the UK
. Mosque
s are the primary centres for religious and social gatherings, and also play an important role in sharing information. Traditionally, Somalis attended mosques established by the more settled Muslim communities, though there are now a small number of mosques operated by Somalis.
, whose music has been described by Afropop Worldwide as "an eclectic mix of classical Somali sound featuring the oud
, and blending hip hop, pop, and dance music". Poly Styrene
, whose father was Somali, was a member of the punk rock band X-Ray Spex
, and later a solo artist.
is a radio station transmitted in the Somali language around the world. The majority of Somalis in the UK listen to the BBC Somali Service for news and information. While many listen at home via satellite radio or the Internet, others listen in groups at Somali shops, restaurants, khat
houses or mosques.
Somali Eye Media is a media organisation based in London and set up in 2003 by Adam Dirir, a prominent member of the Somali community. It publishes the magazine Somali Eye quarterly, and operates Somali Voice Radio, a radio station, through Sound Radio 1503 AM. Two other UK-based Somali radio stations are Somali On Air and Nomad Radio. Bristol Community FM features a weekly chat show that is hosted by Somali Women's Voice.
There are also a few weekly and monthly Somali newspapers available in the UK in both Somali and English, including Kasmo, Jamhuuriya, and The Somali Voice. Other magazines and newspapers have failed due to poor readership figures. A 2006 survey by the International Organization for Migration
suggests that Somalis in the UK prefer to read newspapers such as Metro
to improve their English language skills, although listening to radio was more popular. In 2007, five emerging Somali authors (including Adam Dirir) published Silent Voices, an anthology about Somali life in Britain.
Prominent Somali media figures in the UK include Rageh Omaar
, a television news presenter and a writer, and advocate for the Somali community. He received the 2002–2003 Ethnic Multicultural Media Academy
award for the best TV journalist. Omaar was formerly a BBC
world affairs correspondent, where he made his name reporting on the Iraq War. In September 2006, he moved to a new post at Al Jazeera English, where he currently hosts the current-affairs programme, The Rageh Omaar Show. Yusuf Garaad Omar
is a Somali journalist and head of the BBC Somali Service. Other Somali media figures include Mo Ali, a film director born in Saudi Arabia
, who debuted in 2010 his feature film, Shank, set in a futuristic London. Somali-British author Nadifa Mohamed
's debuting novel, Black Mamba Boy
(2009), won the 2010 Betty Trask Award
, and was short-listed for several awards, including the 2010 Guardian First Book Award
, the 2010 Dylan Thomas Prize
, and the 2010 John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
.
but grew up in Djibouti
and moved to the UK aged eight. He generally competes in the 5,000 metres event, having won his first major title at the European Athletics Junior Championships
in 2001. Farah also competes in cross-country running, where in December 2006, he became European champion in Italy. He holds the British indoor record in the 3000 metres
. In 2010, Farah earned Great Britain its first ever gold medal
in the 10,000 metre event at the European Athletics Championships, as well as a second gold in the 5,000 metres. Other prominent Somali athletes in the UK include footballer Abdisalam Ibrahim
of Manchester City
, who is the Premier League's first Somali player and first from East Africa; he represents Norway
at international level.
, MP for Ealing Southall, suggested that Somali youths were responsible for a rise in street robberies in his constituency. However the Police said it wasn't appropriate to comment on one person's views, but officers did not believe Somali youths were to blame for the majority of street robberies back in 2002. To tackle this issue, community youth forums have formed that work closely with law enforcement to deter crime. Women's groups have started to form, and the Metropolitan Police
recently hired its first Somali female officer. The Somali Youth Development Resource Centre (SYDRC), a Somali community-reach organisation based in Camden, has joined forces with the Metropolitan Police's Communities Together Strategic Engagement Team to establish the London Somali Youth Forum, which provides an outlet for the city's young Somalis to address security-related issues and to get engaged with the local police. The SYDRC has hired numerous youth ambassadors for the purpose, 16 of whom have been specifically trained in community engagement.
is a plant that is mainly grown in East Africa
and the Middle East
. Its leaves are chewed for their stimulating properties, primarily by people from these regions. Within Somali culture especially, khat chewing has a long history as a social custom that traditionally brings people together to relax and to encourage conversation. Some people also use it to help them stay alert during work or school. Ordinarily, khat use would be limited to specific periods of the day and session durations. Khat itself is legal in the UK and readily available at mafrishes, commercial establishments where the substance is sold and chewed. Within the Somali community as well as other groups with khat-chewing traditions, the activity is generally perceived as legitimate and is not censured like alcohol and illegal drug use are within those same communities.
However, some commentators, health professionals and community members have expressed concerns about the long-term effects of the use of khat by Somalis in the UK, suggesting that excessive use has a negative social and health impact on the community. One review of studies of the effects of khat use by Somalis and other immigrants on their mental health suggests that there is a need for better research on khat-chewing and its possible link with psychiatric disorders; it also suggests that public discourse on the issue displays elements of a moral panic
. Some Somali community organisations have also campaigned for khat to be banned. As a result of these concerns, the Home Office
commissioned successive research studies to look into the matter, and in 2005, presented the question of khat's legal status before the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. After a careful review of the evidence, the expert committee recommended in January 2006 that the status of khat as a legal substance should remain for the time being.
In 2005, the Home Office issued a report on research examining the level and nature of the use of khat by Somalis in four English cities; Birmingham, Bristol, London and Sheffield. It found that 38 percent of the respondents had ever used khat in their lifetime, with 58 percent of men and only 16 percent of women reporting having ever used it. 34 percent of the overall sample indicated that they had chewed khat the month before, 51 percent of which were men and 14 percent were women. Some reported family tensions arising from their khat use. 49 percent of those surveyed were in favour of banning khat, with 35 opposed, but the report suggested that this would not be effective. Three quarters of participants who had used khat reported having suffered health effects, although these were mostly mild in nature, with the most common symptoms respondents associated with khat use being sleeping difficulties, loss of appetite, and an urge to chew more khat. The study concluded that most of the participants who were using khat were using it moderately in terms of both the quantity used and the frequency and duration of chewing sessions, and that khat use was typically a social activity. Only a small minority of the study participants' khat use was judged to be excessive.
, and of this group, about 80 percent live in social housing. However, this representation is numerically very small in relation to the total number of social tenants in the UK; 72,800 of the 92,200 person Somalia-born community reside in social housing compared to 8.4 million UK-born social tenants.
Factors that account for the high uptake of social housing in the community include generally lower household incomes that make it difficult to buy property; a preference for living in London, where property prices are higher and there are proportionately more social tenants from all communities; and a high proportion of new arrivals in the Somali community, with newcomers least likely to have gathered the savings that are required to buy property. Another contributing factor is the proportionately larger family sizes for which to find affordable and appropriate accommodation; about 10.8 per cent of Somalia-born households have five or more children as compared to 0.3 per cent of the UK-born population. Foreign-born populations in general tend to have larger families than the UK-born average.
Most Somalia-born immigrants are eligible for social housing, as they have either refugee status, settled status or UK or EEA citizenship. Social housing and support for asylum seekers is allocated by the UK Border Agency
(UKBA), and expires after an asylum claim has been processed.
(IPPR) report found that 50 percent had no qualifications and 3 percent had higher-education qualifications. At school, girls generally perform better than boys.
A report by the Institute for Public Policy Research
attributes the low employment rate to the newness of the Somali community and to the fact that most immigrants came in search of asylum rather than through labor migration channels. Data suggests asylum seekers in general appear to have more difficulty accessing employment. This includes skilled professionals who, while constituting a high proportion of Somali immigrants, have not all been able to find work in their field. Many have struggled to get the qualifications that they have gained in Somalia recognised in the UK. According to the Warwickshire Police Force and a report by ELWa, asylum seekers are also not legally allowed to work for payment since the National Asylum Support Service
(NASS) (now the UK Border Agency) administers their monetary benefits while their claim is being processed.
On the representative front, however, the Somali community has become increasingly engaged in local politics. Mohamed "Jimmy" Ali became the UK's first Somali councillor
in 2004. The incumbent mayor
of Tower Hamlets, Ahmed Omer, is originally from Somalia, the first to be appointed to office in London and the country when he assumed office in 2009. Mark Hendrick
, who is partly of Somali descent, previously served as a member of the European Parliament
before being elected a Labour Co-operative
Member of Parliament
for Preston
in a by-election in 2000
. Around 17 Somali candidates also stood in the 2010 local elections
. Of these, at least seven Somali councillors were elected, including Gulaid Abdullah Ahmed, Abdifatah Aden, Awale Olad, and Abdul Mohamed of the Labour Party
, as well as Asad Osman of the Liberal Democrats
, a former chairman of the Somali Youth Development Resource Centre.
have a strong tradition in trade, with a long history of maritime enterprise stretching back to antiquity that includes possible commerce
with ancient Britons
based on rare commodities such as tin
. In recent times, several Somali multinational companies
, such as Omar A. Ali
's Integrated Property Investments Limited, with multi-million dollar projects in East Africa
, and Invicta Capital, with an investment capital of £1.4 billion, have their headquarters in London. A 2008 study on immigrant business in Britain highlighted that the level of community support enjoyed by Somali traders was high in comparison to other immigrant groups. Somali enterprise has also begun replacing previously India
n-dominated business premises. Southall
, for example, now features several Somali-oriented restaurants and cafés.
s, remittance companies, hairdressing salons and travel agencies
to, especially, internet café
s. Although some of these businesses cater to mainstream British society, most are aimed at a Somali clientele. However, the Midlands Somali Business Association has recognised the potential benefits of penetrating the larger British business community, and is encouraging stakeholders to tap into this sector. The organisation is also exploring opportunities for transnational businesses.
, Qaran Express, Mustaqbal, Amal Express, Kaah Express, Hodan Global, Olympic, Amana Express, Iftin Express and Tawakal Express. Most are credentialed members of the Somali Money Transfer Association (SOMTA) (or its predecessor, the Somali Financial Services Association (SFSA)), an umbrella organisation that regulates the community's money transfer
sector. The bulk of remittances are sent by Somalis to relatives in Somalia, a practice which has had a stimulating effect on that country's economy.
Dahabshiil is the largest of the Somali money transfer operators (MTO), having captured most of the market vacated by Al-Barakaat. The firm has its headquarters in London and employs more than 2000 people across 144 countries, with 130 branches in the United Kingdom alone, a further 130 branches in Somalia, and 400 branches globally, including one in Dubai
. It invests 5 percent of its profits into community projects aimed at improving schools, hospitals, agriculture and sanitation services, and sponsors a number of social events, including the Somali Week Festival and the Somali Youth Sports Association, which help to promote understanding and cooperation through Somali art and culture and sport, respectively. In 2008, Dahabshiil's CEO, Abdirashid Duale
, a Somali who has British citizenship, was awarded Top Manager of the Year by the International Association of Money Transfer Networks in recognition of the services the firm offers its clients. This was followed in 2010 with the Mayor of Tower Hamlets award for excellence in the community, which recognises the "outstanding contribution" Dahabshiil has made to the local, national and international Somali community over the last 40 years.
After Dahabshiil, Qaran Express is the largest Somali-owned funds transfer company. The firm has its headquarters in both London and Dubai, with 175 agents worldwide, 64 agents in London and 66 in Somalia, and charges nothing for remitting charity
funds. Mustaqbal is the third most prominent Somali MTO with branches in the United Kingdom, having 49 agents in the UK and 8 agents in Somalia.
| url=http://www.sussex.ac.uk/migration/documents/mwp23.pdf | accessdate=30 June 2010}} | location=London|publisher=Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees
(ICAR) | year=June 2004|accessdate=9 August 2010|isbn=0954702441}} | location=London|date=June 2006|accessdate=3 August 2010}} | date = April 2009| accessdate=30 June 2010}}
British nationality law
British nationality law is the law of the United Kingdom that concerns citizenship and other categories of British nationality. The law is complex because of the United Kingdom's former status as an imperial power.-History:...
and residents born in, or with ancestors from, Somalia
Somalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
. It is thought that the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
is home to the largest Somali
Somali people
Somalis are an ethnic group located in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula. The overwhelming majority of Somalis speak the Somali language, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family...
community in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, with 43,532 Somali-born residents recorded by the 2001 Census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, and an estimated 108,000 Somali-born immigrants
Immigration
Immigration is the act of foreigners passing or coming into a country for the purpose of permanent residence...
residing the UK in the year to March 2010 according to the Office for National Statistics
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
.
The earliest Somali immigrants in the UK were seamen and merchants who arrived in the 19th century. A second small group came during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
with the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
, and stayed in search of employment. During the 1980s and 1990s, the civil war
Somali Civil War
The Somali Civil War is an ongoing civil war taking place in Somalia. The conflict, which began in 1991, has caused destabilisation throughout the country, with the current phase of the conflict seeing the Somali government losing substantial control of the state to rebel forces...
in Somalia lead to a large number of Somali immigrants, comprising the majority of the current Somali population in the UK.
The Somali community represents one of the largest Muslim groups in the UK
Islam in the United Kingdom
Islam has been present in the United Kingdom since its formation in 1707, though it was not legally recognised until the Trinitarian Act in 1812. Today it is the second largest religion in the country with estimates suggesting that by 2010 the total Muslim population had reached 2.869 million.The...
. While faced with several social challenges, community members include notable sports figures, filmmakers and local politicians. It has also established business networks and media organisations.
Early migration
The UK has historically been close to SomaliaSomalia
Somalia , officially the Somali Republic and formerly known as the Somali Democratic Republic under Socialist rule, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. Since the outbreak of the Somali Civil War in 1991 there has been no central government control over most of the country's territory...
, through its involvement in the British Somaliland
British Somaliland
British Somaliland was a British protectorate in the northern part of present-day Somalia. For much of its existence, British Somaliland was bordered by French Somaliland, Ethiopia, and Italian Somaliland. From 1940 to 1941, it was occupied by the Italians and was part of Italian East Africa...
protectorate
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
. This link has given rise to a long tradition of Somali
Somali people
Somalis are an ethnic group located in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula. The overwhelming majority of Somalis speak the Somali language, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family...
migration to the UK. Mobility has played an important part in Somali culture. The first Somali immigrants were seamen and merchant
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
s who settled in port cities in the late 19th century, mainly in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Many of these early sailors came from British Somaliland and worked in the thriving docks, whilst living in boarding houses run by other Somalis.
A second, small group came during the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
with the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
and stayed in search of employment. Most of these seamen considered their stay in the UK as temporary and had left their families behind. Until the 1950s, Somali migrants were legally restricted to working in the shipping industry, were paid at rates 25 percent below the pay of native British workers, and forced to settle only in towns and cities that were centres of shipping. In 1953, there were about 600 Somalis living in the UK. When the British merchant navy
Merchant Navy
The Merchant Navy is the maritime register of the United Kingdom, and describes the seagoing commercial interests of UK-registered ships and their crews. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensign and are regulated by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency...
started to wind down in the 1950s, many of these migrants moved to industrial cities such as Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
and Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
, where labour was in great demand. By the 1960s, there were still only a few Somali women in the UK. After the expansion in British industry, Somali men brought over their wives and families. Somali women subsequently began establishing community organisations in the cities where they resided, some of which still exist to this day. In the 1960s and 1970s, Somali students from British Somaliland also came to study in the UK. Some chose to remain in Britain, while others returned to Somalia after graduating.
| Initial decisionsNote that a decision is not necessarily made in the same year as the application it relates to, so decisions do not sum to the number of applications. | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Applications received | Granted asylum | Granted temporary protectionExceptional leave, humanitarian protection or discretionary leave. | Refused |
| 1999 | 7,495 | 130 | 55 | 120 |
| 2000 | 5,020 | 5,310 | 3,575 | 2,365 |
| 2001 | 6,420 | 2,910 | 1,995 | 3,525 |
| 2002 | 6,540 | 2,515 | 1,405 | 2,815 |
| 2003 | 5,090 | 1,665 | 550 | 3,835 |
| 2004 | 2,585 | 455 | 460 | 2,355 |
| 2005 | 1,760 | 660 | 195 | 1,000 |
| 2006 | 1,845 | 655 | 165 | 905 |
| 2007 | 1,615 | 805 | 105 | 700 |
| 20082008 figures are provisional. | 1,345 | 490 | 75 | 550 |
Refugees and asylum seekers
During the 1980s and 1990s, the civil warSomali Civil War
The Somali Civil War is an ongoing civil war taking place in Somalia. The conflict, which began in 1991, has caused destabilisation throughout the country, with the current phase of the conflict seeing the Somali government losing substantial control of the state to rebel forces...
in Somalia lead to a large number of Somali immigrants, comprising the majority of the current Somali population in the UK. During the period 1988 to 1994, the favoured destination of people fleeing the civil war was Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
, but by 1999 53 percent of Somali asylum applications in Europe were made in the UK. Many of these asylum seekers had fled from neighbouring countries such as Ethiopia before migrating to the UK. Many of the refugees were not men, but women and children whose men had either been killed or had stayed in Somalia to fight, changing the Somali settlement from one of single seamen to that of refugee communities. Between 1985 and 2006, Somalis figured among the top ten largest country of origin groups of people seeking asylum
Right of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
in the UK. In the late 1980s, most of these early migrants were granted refugee
Refugee
A refugee is a person who outside her country of origin or habitual residence because she has suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because she is a member of a persecuted 'social group'. Such a person may be referred to as an 'asylum seeker' until...
status, while those arriving later in the 1990s more often obtained temporary status.
Secondary migration
There has also been some secondary migration of Somalis to the UK from the NetherlandsNetherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. An academic article published in 2010 suggests that, since 2000, between 10,000 and 20,000 Somalis in the Netherlands
Somalis in the Netherlands
Somalis in the Netherlands are naturalized Dutch citizens and residents born in, or with ancestors from Somalia. They form one of the larger Somali communities in Europe.-Migration history:...
have moved to the UK. The driving forces behind this secondary migration included: a desire to reunite with family and friends; a rise in Dutch opposition to Muslim immigration; Somali opposition to housing policies which forced them to live scattered in small groups all over various cities rather than in a larger agglomerated community; a restrictive socio-economic environment which, among other things, made it difficult for new arrivals to find work; and the comparative ease of starting a business and acquiring the means to get off social welfare in the UK. Research into this relocation also suggests that some Somali migrants in the Netherlands did not intend to end up there as a final destination. Their journeys may have been interrupted in the Netherlands, or they may have had little choice about their destination. As a result, some secondary migration can be seen in the context of the desire to complete an intended migration to the UK.
Naturalisation
Between 1983 and 1994, the number of Somalis granted British citizenship was generally low, ranging from 40 in 1987 to 140 in 1994. However, in 1995 the number of grants of citizenship started to rise significantly, reaching a peak of 11,165 in 2004, before falling somewhat in the following years. In 2009, 8,140 Somali nationals were granted British citizenship, accounting for around four percent of all naturalisations and making Somali the sixth most common previous nationality amongst those granted citizenship that year.Population and distribution
There are no wholly reliable statistics on the number of Somalis in the UK. This is because UK ethnicity classificationsClassification of ethnicity in the United Kingdom
The classification of ethnicity in the United Kingdom has attracted controversy in the past: particularly at the time of the 2001 Census where the existence and nature of such a classification, which appeared on the Census form, became more widely known than general.Different classifications, both...
are not detailed enough to include a Somali category (though the census does have a 'write in' response option for people who identify themselves as Somali) and because of a lack of research on this subject. It is thought that the UK is home to the largest Somali community in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, however. The census does record respondents' country of birth, and 43,532 Somali-born residents were enumerated by the 2001 Census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
. The Office for National Statistics
Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.- Overview :...
estimates that 108,000 Somali-born immigrants were resident in the UK in the year to March 2010. Media organisations report that experts estimate that around 95,000 Somalis may now live in the UK, with Somali community organisations putting the figure at 90,000 residents. However, these estimates are complicated by the exchange of Somalis both arriving in the UK and those deciding to return to Somalia or elsewhere.
| Location | Somali-born population (2001 Census) | Somalis regardless of birthplace (2003–2007 estimates collated by CLG Department for Communities and Local Government The Department for Communities and Local Government is the UK Government department for communities and local government in England. It was established in May 2006 and is the successor to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, established in 2001... ) |
Somalis regardless of birthplace (2006 estimates by ICAR Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees The Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees is an organisation involved in academic research and information provision on asylum seekers and refugees in the United Kingdom. Launched in 2000, ICAR was initially based at King's College London... ) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greater London Greater London Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London... |
33,838 | 70,000 | |
| Ealing Ealing Ealing is a suburban area of west London, England and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Ealing. It is located west of Charing Cross and around from the City of London. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically a rural village... |
3,045 | 11,000–15,000 | |
| Tower Hamlets | 1,353 | 10,000–15,000 | |
| Islington Islington Islington is a neighbourhood in Greater London, England and forms the central district of the London Borough of Islington. It is a district of Inner London, spanning from Islington High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the area around the busy Upper Street... |
1,226 | 2,500–4,000 | |
| Sheffield Sheffield Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely... |
1,306 | 3,000–5,000 | 10,000 |
| Manchester Manchester Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater... |
1,225 | 5,000–6,000 | |
| Leicester Leicester Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest... |
872 | 10,000–15,000 | 15,000 |
| Birmingham Birmingham Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a... |
819 | 3,000–4,000 | 35,000 |
| Cardiff Cardiff Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for... |
788 | 10,000 | |
| Liverpool Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880... |
678 | 3,000–5,000 |
As with estimates of the total Somali population in the UK, estimates by city vary significantly between sources. This problem is party the result of defining "Somali", with some sources estimating the Somali-born population only, and others estimating the size of the ethnic Somali community, including second and subsequent-generation British Somalis. The 2001 census found that 33,838 Somali-born people were resident in London. Other sources suggest that Cardiff has the highest number of people of Somali heritage anywhere in the UK, though the number of Somali-born immigrants there is low. The table on the right summarises census data and other estimates of the Somali population in a number of British cities.
Language
The Somali languageSomali language
The Somali language is a member of the East Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family. Its nearest relatives are Afar and Oromo. Somali is the best documented of the Cushitic languages, with academic studies beginning before 1900....
is the mother tongue of the Somali people, and the official language of Somalia. It is a member of the Cushitic
Cushitic languages
The Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family spoken in the Horn of Africa, Tanzania, Kenya, Sudan and Egypt. They are named after the Biblical character Cush, who was identified as an ancestor of the speakers of these specific languages as early as AD 947...
branch of the Afro-Asiatic
Afro-Asiatic languages
The Afroasiatic languages , also known as Hamito-Semitic, constitute one of the world's largest language families, with about 375 living languages...
language family. Some Somalis in the UK also speak Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, another Afro-Asiatic tongue and the other official language of Somalia, with about 15 percent of Somalis in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
being completely fluent in it according to a 2006 report by the Foreign Policy Centre
Foreign Policy Centre
The Foreign Policy Centre is a British think tank specialising in foreign policy. It was formed in 1998 and launched by Tony Blair with the aim of developing a "vision of a fair and rule-based world order". It is pro-European. It has its origins on the centre-left of British politics, but works...
. Some Somalis who have arrived in the UK via a secondary migration from other European countries do not speak their mother-tongue or English very well, and consequently face challenges integrating into both the Somali and British communities.
Religion
With very few exceptions, Somalis are MuslimMuslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s, the majority belonging to the Sunni
Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah or ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah for short; in English, they are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis or Sunnites....
branch of Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
and the Shafi`i school of Islamic jurisprudence. Somalis constitute one of the largest Muslim groups in the UK
Islam in the United Kingdom
Islam has been present in the United Kingdom since its formation in 1707, though it was not legally recognised until the Trinitarian Act in 1812. Today it is the second largest religion in the country with estimates suggesting that by 2010 the total Muslim population had reached 2.869 million.The...
. Mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
s are the primary centres for religious and social gatherings, and also play an important role in sharing information. Traditionally, Somalis attended mosques established by the more settled Muslim communities, though there are now a small number of mosques operated by Somalis.
Music
Prominent Somali musicians based in the UK include Aar MaantaAar Maanta
-Biography:Maanta moved from his native Somalia to the United Kingdom in the late 1980s due to the civil war there. As a lone child in a new country, he turned to music for comfort, absorbing many genres including pop, rock, hip hop, R&B and house. Maanta started studying music at school and then...
, whose music has been described by Afropop Worldwide as "an eclectic mix of classical Somali sound featuring the oud
Oud
The oud is a pear-shaped stringed instrument commonly used in North African and Middle Eastern music. The modern oud and the European lute both descend from a common ancestor via diverging paths...
, and blending hip hop, pop, and dance music". Poly Styrene
Poly Styrene
Poly Styrene was the stage name of Marianne Joan Elliott-Said , a British musician, songwriter and singer, most notably in the pioneering punk rock band X-Ray Spex.-Early life:...
, whose father was Somali, was a member of the punk rock band X-Ray Spex
X-Ray Spex
X-Ray Spex were an English punk band from London that formed in 1976.During their first incarnation , X-Ray Spex were “deliberate underachievers” and only managed to release five singles and one album...
, and later a solo artist.
Media
The BBC Somali ServiceBBC Somali Service
The BBC Somali Service is a BBC World Service radio station transmitted in the Somali language and based in Bush House, Strand. Since 1999 the head of the station has been Yusuf Garaad Omar, a Somali journalist, who joined in 1992. Most of the listeners live in the Horn of Africa and nearby regions...
is a radio station transmitted in the Somali language around the world. The majority of Somalis in the UK listen to the BBC Somali Service for news and information. While many listen at home via satellite radio or the Internet, others listen in groups at Somali shops, restaurants, khat
Khat
Khat, qat, gat or Waquish Spoken from true Yemeni, is a flowering plant native to tropical East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula....
houses or mosques.
Somali Eye Media is a media organisation based in London and set up in 2003 by Adam Dirir, a prominent member of the Somali community. It publishes the magazine Somali Eye quarterly, and operates Somali Voice Radio, a radio station, through Sound Radio 1503 AM. Two other UK-based Somali radio stations are Somali On Air and Nomad Radio. Bristol Community FM features a weekly chat show that is hosted by Somali Women's Voice.
There are also a few weekly and monthly Somali newspapers available in the UK in both Somali and English, including Kasmo, Jamhuuriya, and The Somali Voice. Other magazines and newspapers have failed due to poor readership figures. A 2006 survey by the International Organization for Migration
International Organization for Migration
The International Organization for Migration is an intergovernmental organization. It was initially established in 1951 as the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration to help resettle people displaced by World War II....
suggests that Somalis in the UK prefer to read newspapers such as Metro
Metro (Associated Metro Limited)
Metro is a free daily newspaper in the United Kingdom published by Associated Newspapers Ltd . It is available from Monday to Friday each week on many public transport services across the United Kingdom.-History:The paper was launched in London in 1999, and can now be found in 14 UK urban centres...
to improve their English language skills, although listening to radio was more popular. In 2007, five emerging Somali authors (including Adam Dirir) published Silent Voices, an anthology about Somali life in Britain.
Prominent Somali media figures in the UK include Rageh Omaar
Rageh Omaar
Rageh Omaar , is a Somali born British journalist and writer. His latest book Only Half of Me deals with the tensions between these two sides of his identity. He used to be a BBC world affairs correspondent, where he made his name reporting from Iraq...
, a television news presenter and a writer, and advocate for the Somali community. He received the 2002–2003 Ethnic Multicultural Media Academy
EMMA
EMMA is an Organization which raises awareness of discrimination through media campaigns, social networking, and the EMMA Awards....
award for the best TV journalist. Omaar was formerly a BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
world affairs correspondent, where he made his name reporting on the Iraq War. In September 2006, he moved to a new post at Al Jazeera English, where he currently hosts the current-affairs programme, The Rageh Omaar Show. Yusuf Garaad Omar
Yusuf Garaad Omar
Yusuf Garaad Omar born in Mogadishu in June 1960 is a Somali journalist. He has been the head of BBC Somali Service in London, UK since 1999. He also worked for Radio Mogadishu in Somalia in 1980s. Apart from managing the BBC Somali Service, he engages in programmes for training Somali journalists....
is a Somali journalist and head of the BBC Somali Service. Other Somali media figures include Mo Ali, a film director born in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
, who debuted in 2010 his feature film, Shank, set in a futuristic London. Somali-British author Nadifa Mohamed
Nadifa Mohamed
Nadifa Mohamed is an award-winning Somali-British novelist.-Personal life:Nadifa was born in Hargeisa, Somalia in 1981. In 1986, she moved with her family to London...
's debuting novel, Black Mamba Boy
Black Mamba Boy
Black Mamba Boy is a 2009 novel by the Somali-British author Nadifa Mohamed.-Overview:Black Mamba Boy is a semi-autobiographical account of Nadifa's father's life in Yemen in the 1930s and 40s, during the colonial period...
(2009), won the 2010 Betty Trask Award
Betty Trask Award
The Betty Trask Prize and Awards are for first novels written by authors under the age of 35, who reside in a current or former Commonwealth nation. The awards were established in 1984 by the Society of Authors, at the bequest of the late Betty Trask, a reclusive author of over thirty romance novels...
, and was short-listed for several awards, including the 2010 Guardian First Book Award
Guardian First Book Award
Guardian First Book Award, issued before 1999 as Guardian Fiction Prize or Guardian Fiction Award, is awarded to new writing in fiction and non-fiction.-History:...
, the 2010 Dylan Thomas Prize
Dylan Thomas Prize
The Dylan Thomas Prize is the world’s top cash prize for young writers. The annual prize, named in honor of the Welsh writer and poet Dylan Thomas, brings international prestige and a cash award of £30,000 . It is open to published writers in the English language under the age of thirty. The prize...
, and the 2010 John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
John Llewellyn Rhys Prize
The John Llewellyn Rhys Prize is a literary prize awarded annually for the best work of literature by an author from the Commonwealth aged 35 or under, written in English and published in the United Kingdom...
.
Sport
Somali athletes in the UK include Mo Farah, a long-distance runner based in London. Farah was born in MogadishuMogadishu
Mogadishu , popularly known as Xamar, is the largest city in Somalia and the nation's capital. Located in the coastal Benadir region on the Indian Ocean, the city has served as an important port for centuries....
but grew up in Djibouti
Djibouti
Djibouti , officially the Republic of Djibouti , is a country in the Horn of Africa. It is bordered by Eritrea in the north, Ethiopia in the west and south, and Somalia in the southeast. The remainder of the border is formed by the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden at the east...
and moved to the UK aged eight. He generally competes in the 5,000 metres event, having won his first major title at the European Athletics Junior Championships
European Athletics Junior Championships
The European Athletics Junior Championships are the European championships open for those of age. The IAAF defines Junior as athletes who are 19 years of age or under. It is currently organized by the European Athletic Association....
in 2001. Farah also competes in cross-country running, where in December 2006, he became European champion in Italy. He holds the British indoor record in the 3000 metres
3000 metres
The 3000 metres is a popular amateur middle distance track event where 7.5 laps are completed around a 400 metre track. This event is generally classified as middle distance, but it could be classed as a long distance event in many high schools, since they do not promote races such as the 5000 and...
. In 2010, Farah earned Great Britain its first ever gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
in the 10,000 metre event at the European Athletics Championships, as well as a second gold in the 5,000 metres. Other prominent Somali athletes in the UK include footballer Abdisalam Ibrahim
Abdisalam Ibrahim
Abdisalam Abdulkadir Ibrahim is a Somali-Norwegian footballer who plays for Dutch Eredivisie side NEC on loan from Manchester City....
of Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
, who is the Premier League's first Somali player and first from East Africa; he represents Norway
Norway national football team
The Norway national football team represents Norway in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Norway, the governing body for football in Norway. Norway's home ground is Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo and their head coach is Egil Olsen...
at international level.
Social issues and solutions
One of the main barriers to integration facing Somalis is language, which has an effect on housing and health conditions. The issue of youth crime and gang violence with in the Somali community is often covered in the media. In 2002, Piara KhabraPiara Khabra
Piara Singh Khabra was a British politician who served as the Labour Member of Parliament for Ealing Southall from 1992 until his death. He was the fifth Asian, and the first Sikh, to become a British MP...
, MP for Ealing Southall, suggested that Somali youths were responsible for a rise in street robberies in his constituency. However the Police said it wasn't appropriate to comment on one person's views, but officers did not believe Somali youths were to blame for the majority of street robberies back in 2002. To tackle this issue, community youth forums have formed that work closely with law enforcement to deter crime. Women's groups have started to form, and the Metropolitan Police
Metropolitan Police Service
The Metropolitan Police Service is the territorial police force responsible for Greater London, excluding the "square mile" of the City of London which is the responsibility of the City of London Police...
recently hired its first Somali female officer. The Somali Youth Development Resource Centre (SYDRC), a Somali community-reach organisation based in Camden, has joined forces with the Metropolitan Police's Communities Together Strategic Engagement Team to establish the London Somali Youth Forum, which provides an outlet for the city's young Somalis to address security-related issues and to get engaged with the local police. The SYDRC has hired numerous youth ambassadors for the purpose, 16 of whom have been specifically trained in community engagement.
Khat
KhatKhat
Khat, qat, gat or Waquish Spoken from true Yemeni, is a flowering plant native to tropical East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula....
is a plant that is mainly grown in East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
and the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. Its leaves are chewed for their stimulating properties, primarily by people from these regions. Within Somali culture especially, khat chewing has a long history as a social custom that traditionally brings people together to relax and to encourage conversation. Some people also use it to help them stay alert during work or school. Ordinarily, khat use would be limited to specific periods of the day and session durations. Khat itself is legal in the UK and readily available at mafrishes, commercial establishments where the substance is sold and chewed. Within the Somali community as well as other groups with khat-chewing traditions, the activity is generally perceived as legitimate and is not censured like alcohol and illegal drug use are within those same communities.
However, some commentators, health professionals and community members have expressed concerns about the long-term effects of the use of khat by Somalis in the UK, suggesting that excessive use has a negative social and health impact on the community. One review of studies of the effects of khat use by Somalis and other immigrants on their mental health suggests that there is a need for better research on khat-chewing and its possible link with psychiatric disorders; it also suggests that public discourse on the issue displays elements of a moral panic
Moral panic
A moral panic is the intensity of feeling expressed in a population about an issue that appears to threaten the social order. According to Stanley Cohen, author of Folk Devils and Moral Panics and credited creator of the term, a moral panic occurs when "[a] condition, episode, person or group of...
. Some Somali community organisations have also campaigned for khat to be banned. As a result of these concerns, the Home Office
Home Office
The Home Office is the United Kingdom government department responsible for immigration control, security, and order. As such it is responsible for the police, UK Border Agency, and the Security Service . It is also in charge of government policy on security-related issues such as drugs,...
commissioned successive research studies to look into the matter, and in 2005, presented the question of khat's legal status before the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. After a careful review of the evidence, the expert committee recommended in January 2006 that the status of khat as a legal substance should remain for the time being.
In 2005, the Home Office issued a report on research examining the level and nature of the use of khat by Somalis in four English cities; Birmingham, Bristol, London and Sheffield. It found that 38 percent of the respondents had ever used khat in their lifetime, with 58 percent of men and only 16 percent of women reporting having ever used it. 34 percent of the overall sample indicated that they had chewed khat the month before, 51 percent of which were men and 14 percent were women. Some reported family tensions arising from their khat use. 49 percent of those surveyed were in favour of banning khat, with 35 opposed, but the report suggested that this would not be effective. Three quarters of participants who had used khat reported having suffered health effects, although these were mostly mild in nature, with the most common symptoms respondents associated with khat use being sleeping difficulties, loss of appetite, and an urge to chew more khat. The study concluded that most of the participants who were using khat were using it moderately in terms of both the quantity used and the frequency and duration of chewing sessions, and that khat use was typically a social activity. Only a small minority of the study participants' khat use was judged to be excessive.
Housing
According to reports, over 95 percent of Somali immigrants in the UK live in rental accommodationHousing tenure
Housing tenure refers to the financial arrangements under which someone has the right to live in a house or apartment. The most frequent forms are tenancy, in which rent is paid to a landlord, and owner occupancy. Mixed forms of tenure are also possible....
, and of this group, about 80 percent live in social housing. However, this representation is numerically very small in relation to the total number of social tenants in the UK; 72,800 of the 92,200 person Somalia-born community reside in social housing compared to 8.4 million UK-born social tenants.
Factors that account for the high uptake of social housing in the community include generally lower household incomes that make it difficult to buy property; a preference for living in London, where property prices are higher and there are proportionately more social tenants from all communities; and a high proportion of new arrivals in the Somali community, with newcomers least likely to have gathered the savings that are required to buy property. Another contributing factor is the proportionately larger family sizes for which to find affordable and appropriate accommodation; about 10.8 per cent of Somalia-born households have five or more children as compared to 0.3 per cent of the UK-born population. Foreign-born populations in general tend to have larger families than the UK-born average.
Most Somalia-born immigrants are eligible for social housing, as they have either refugee status, settled status or UK or EEA citizenship. Social housing and support for asylum seekers is allocated by the UK Border Agency
UK Border Agency
The UK Border Agency is the border control body of the United Kingdom government and part of the Home Office. It was formed on 1 April 2008 by a merger of the Border and Immigration Agency , UKvisas and the Detection functions of HM Revenue and Customs...
(UKBA), and expires after an asylum claim has been processed.
Education
Levels of education within the Somali community are low. A 2005 Institute for Public Policy ResearchInstitute for Public Policy Research
The IPPR is the leading progressive think-tank in the UK. It produces research and policy ideas committed to upholding values of social justice, democratic reform and environmental sustainability. IPPR is based in London and IPPR North has branches in Newcastle and Manchester.It was founded in...
(IPPR) report found that 50 percent had no qualifications and 3 percent had higher-education qualifications. At school, girls generally perform better than boys.
Employment
Somali-born migrants have the lowest employment rate among all immigrants in the UK. Figures published by the Office for National Statistics show high rates of economic inactivity and unemployment amongst Somali immigrants. In the three months to June 2008, 31.4 percent of Somali men and 84.2 percent of Somali women were economically inactive (the statistics include students, carers and the long-term sick, injured or disabled in this group). Of those who were economically active, 41.4 percent of the men and 39.1 percent of the women were unemployed. Employment rates were 40.1 percent for men and 9.6 percent for women. The male employment rate has, however, risen from 21.5 percent in 1998.A report by the Institute for Public Policy Research
Institute for Public Policy Research
The IPPR is the leading progressive think-tank in the UK. It produces research and policy ideas committed to upholding values of social justice, democratic reform and environmental sustainability. IPPR is based in London and IPPR North has branches in Newcastle and Manchester.It was founded in...
attributes the low employment rate to the newness of the Somali community and to the fact that most immigrants came in search of asylum rather than through labor migration channels. Data suggests asylum seekers in general appear to have more difficulty accessing employment. This includes skilled professionals who, while constituting a high proportion of Somali immigrants, have not all been able to find work in their field. Many have struggled to get the qualifications that they have gained in Somalia recognised in the UK. According to the Warwickshire Police Force and a report by ELWa, asylum seekers are also not legally allowed to work for payment since the National Asylum Support Service
National Asylum Support Service
The National Asylum Support Service is a section of the UK Border Agency , which is itself a part of the Home Office. It is responsible for supporting and accommodating people seeking asylum while their cases are being dealt with....
(NASS) (now the UK Border Agency) administers their monetary benefits while their claim is being processed.
Community organisations
Somali community organisations exist in the majority of large British cities. According to one study, however, while the number of community organisations is high, the clan dynamics of the Somali community have prevented the development of united collective representation.Politics
Kayse Maxamed, editor of Somali Voice, has argued that many Somalis with British citizenship who are entitled to vote do not exercise this right, partly because of a lack of understanding of the voting registration process.On the representative front, however, the Somali community has become increasingly engaged in local politics. Mohamed "Jimmy" Ali became the UK's first Somali councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
in 2004. The incumbent mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Tower Hamlets, Ahmed Omer, is originally from Somalia, the first to be appointed to office in London and the country when he assumed office in 2009. Mark Hendrick
Mark Hendrick
Mark Phillip Hendrick is a British Labour Co-operative politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Preston since winning a by-election in 2000.-Biography:Hendrick, who is half Somali, was born in Salford, Lancashire...
, who is partly of Somali descent, previously served as a member of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
before being elected a Labour Co-operative
Labour Co-operative
Labour and Co-operative describes those candidates in British elections standing on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party, based on a national agreement between the two parties....
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Preston
Preston (UK Parliament constituency)
Preston is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...
in a by-election in 2000
Preston by-election, 2000
The Member of Parliament for Preston, Audrey Wise, died on 2 September 2000.A by-election to fill the seat was held on 23 November.The Labour vote share declined, but with the main beneficiaries being fringe parties they held the seat comfortably....
. Around 17 Somali candidates also stood in the 2010 local elections
United Kingdom local elections, 2010
The 2010 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 6 May 2010, when the 2010 general election also took place. Direct elections were held to all 32 London boroughs, all 36 metropolitan boroughs, 76 second-tier district authorities, 20 unitary authorities and various Mayoral posts, all in...
. Of these, at least seven Somali councillors were elected, including Gulaid Abdullah Ahmed, Abdifatah Aden, Awale Olad, and Abdul Mohamed of the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, as well as Asad Osman of the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
, a former chairman of the Somali Youth Development Resource Centre.
Overview
The Somali peopleSomali people
Somalis are an ethnic group located in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula. The overwhelming majority of Somalis speak the Somali language, which is part of the Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family...
have a strong tradition in trade, with a long history of maritime enterprise stretching back to antiquity that includes possible commerce
Commerce
While business refers to the value-creating activities of an organization for profit, commerce means the whole system of an economy that constitutes an environment for business. The system includes legal, economic, political, social, cultural, and technological systems that are in operation in any...
with ancient Britons
Prehistoric Britain
For the purposes of this article, Prehistoric Britain is that period of time between the first arrival of humans on the land mass now known as Great Britain and the start of recorded British history...
based on rare commodities such as tin
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
. In recent times, several Somali multinational companies
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
, such as Omar A. Ali
Omar A. Ali
Omar Abdi Ali is a Somali entrepreneur, accountant, financial consultant, philanthropist, and a leading specialist on Islamic finance. From 1986 to 1999, Omar was CEO of Dar al-Maal al-Islami Trust , a Middle Eastern financial and banking group, which under his management increased it assets from...
's Integrated Property Investments Limited, with multi-million dollar projects in East Africa
East Africa
East Africa or Eastern Africa is the easterly region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics. In the UN scheme of geographic regions, 19 territories constitute Eastern Africa:...
, and Invicta Capital, with an investment capital of £1.4 billion, have their headquarters in London. A 2008 study on immigrant business in Britain highlighted that the level of community support enjoyed by Somali traders was high in comparison to other immigrant groups. Somali enterprise has also begun replacing previously India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n-dominated business premises. Southall
Southall
Southall is a large suburban district of west London, England, and part of the London Borough of Ealing. It is situated west of Charing Cross. Neighbouring places include Yeading, Hayes, Hanwell, Heston, Hounslow, Greenford and Northolt...
, for example, now features several Somali-oriented restaurants and cafés.
Networks
The Somali diaspora in the UK operates various networks, with the Somaliland Chamber of Commerce having an office locally. Another Somali business network, the Midlands Somali Business Association, a non-profit organisation centered in Birmingham, offers commercial advice to Somali businesses based in the city. It also publishes a quarterly newsletter and runs workshops and conferences for the local Somali business community. Additionally, the number of Somali businesses in the UK is increasing, ranging from restaurantRestaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s, remittance companies, hairdressing salons and travel agencies
Travel agency
A travel agency is a retail business that sells travel related products and services to customers on behalf of suppliers such as airlines, car rentals, cruise lines, hotels, railways, sightseeing tours and package holidays that combine several products...
to, especially, internet café
Internet cafe
An Internet café or cybercafé is a place which provides internet access to the public, usually for a fee. These businesses usually provide snacks and drinks, hence the café in the name...
s. Although some of these businesses cater to mainstream British society, most are aimed at a Somali clientele. However, the Midlands Somali Business Association has recognised the potential benefits of penetrating the larger British business community, and is encouraging stakeholders to tap into this sector. The organisation is also exploring opportunities for transnational businesses.
Money transfer operators
Some Somali businesses with a presence in the UK, particularly in the remittance sector, already operate internationally. The latter include DahabshiilDahabshiil
Dahabshiil is an international funds transfer company headquartered in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Formed in the early 1970s, the firm operates from over 24,000 outlets and employs more than 2,000 people across 144 countries. It provides a broad range of financial services to international...
, Qaran Express, Mustaqbal, Amal Express, Kaah Express, Hodan Global, Olympic, Amana Express, Iftin Express and Tawakal Express. Most are credentialed members of the Somali Money Transfer Association (SOMTA) (or its predecessor, the Somali Financial Services Association (SFSA)), an umbrella organisation that regulates the community's money transfer
Wire transfer
Wire transfer or credit transfer is a method of electronic funds transfer from one person or institution to another. A wire transfer can be made from one bank account to another bank account or through a transfer of cash at a cash office...
sector. The bulk of remittances are sent by Somalis to relatives in Somalia, a practice which has had a stimulating effect on that country's economy.
Dahabshiil is the largest of the Somali money transfer operators (MTO), having captured most of the market vacated by Al-Barakaat. The firm has its headquarters in London and employs more than 2000 people across 144 countries, with 130 branches in the United Kingdom alone, a further 130 branches in Somalia, and 400 branches globally, including one in Dubai
Dubai
Dubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
. It invests 5 percent of its profits into community projects aimed at improving schools, hospitals, agriculture and sanitation services, and sponsors a number of social events, including the Somali Week Festival and the Somali Youth Sports Association, which help to promote understanding and cooperation through Somali art and culture and sport, respectively. In 2008, Dahabshiil's CEO, Abdirashid Duale
Abdirashid Duale
Abdirashid Duale is an award-winning British Somali entrepreneur, philanthropist, and the CEO of the multinational enterprise Dahabshiil.-Biography:...
, a Somali who has British citizenship, was awarded Top Manager of the Year by the International Association of Money Transfer Networks in recognition of the services the firm offers its clients. This was followed in 2010 with the Mayor of Tower Hamlets award for excellence in the community, which recognises the "outstanding contribution" Dahabshiil has made to the local, national and international Somali community over the last 40 years.
After Dahabshiil, Qaran Express is the largest Somali-owned funds transfer company. The firm has its headquarters in both London and Dubai, with 175 agents worldwide, 64 agents in London and 66 in Somalia, and charges nothing for remitting charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
funds. Mustaqbal is the third most prominent Somali MTO with branches in the United Kingdom, having 49 agents in the UK and 8 agents in Somalia.
Sources
| url=http://www.sussex.ac.uk/migration/documents/mwp23.pdf | accessdate=30 June 2010}} | location=London|publisher=Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees
Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees
The Information Centre about Asylum and Refugees is an organisation involved in academic research and information provision on asylum seekers and refugees in the United Kingdom. Launched in 2000, ICAR was initially based at King's College London...
(ICAR) | year=June 2004|accessdate=9 August 2010|isbn=0954702441}} | location=London|date=June 2006|accessdate=3 August 2010}} | date = April 2009| accessdate=30 June 2010}}