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Araweelo News Network | Associated Online Agencie

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HARGEISA, Somaliland (ANN) — Somaliland’s long-running campaign for international recognition has come under renewed scrutiny following reports that Guinea-Bissau was considering becoming the first African country to formally recognize Somaliland.
The reports, which circulated during the final week of July, suggested that Somaliland was close to securing a second formal recognition following Israel’s reported recognition of Somaliland in December. However, Guinea-Bissau’s Foreign Ministry subsequently rejected the reports, stating on July 26 that the country had “neither taken nor is considering any decision” to recognize Somaliland.
A detailed report published by Mada Masr on August 10, 2026, nevertheless cited officials on both sides who offered competing accounts of diplomatic contacts between Hargeisa and Bissau.
According to two Somaliland officials cited by Mada Masr, discussions between Somaliland representatives and Guinea-Bissau officials had taken place and were progressing toward possible recognition before, they said, intervention by Somalia and several regional allies disrupted the process.
The officials alleged that a senior Somaliland delegation, including the foreign minister, travelled to Guinea-Bissau for high-level meetings. They described the discussions as initially successful and said Somaliland officials left with expectations that recognition could follow.
Somali officials, however, disputed aspects of that account. One senior Somali official told Mada Masr that Mogadishu learned of the Somaliland delegation’s presence and contacted Guinea-Bissau’s foreign minister. According to the official, Bissau denied that Somaliland officials were in the country and reiterated that it had no intention of recognizing Somaliland.
A Three-Decade Recognition Campaign
Somaliland declared its independence from Somalia in 1991 following the collapse of Somalia’s central government. For more than three decades, Hargeisa has sought international recognition while maintaining its own government institutions, security structures and diplomatic representations abroad.
The question of Somaliland’s status remains sensitive across Africa, particularly because the African Union and many of its member states have traditionally been cautious about changes to established borders.

One of the most significant developments in Somaliland’s recognition campaign came in January 2024, when Somaliland and Ethiopia signed a memorandum of understanding involving proposed access to a coastal area. Somaliland’s then-president