Somalia’s President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has announced plans to include Swahili, the lingua franca of East Africa in the country’s national curriculum.
This marks a major step towards strengthening regional integration.
The President made the declaration at the ongoing East African Community (EAC) Summit in Mogadishu, where he emphasised the importance of adopting Swahili to foster unity and collaboration within the region.
Currently, English serves as the primary medium of instruction across Somalia’s Secondary schools, while Arabic remains the only compulsory second language.
However, under the new policy, Swahili will be introduced at both school and university levels.
“The country’s universities, especially the Somali National University, should focus more on developing the Swahili language, which is the language of East Africa,” President Mohamud said.
“Adopting Swahili is important for our integration into the region,” he added.
Somalia’s Education Minister, Farah Sheikh Abdulkadir, also expressed optimism about the initiative, saying the government was committed to making Swahili a language of communication, trade, and learning.
“We want to see Swahili become widely used, even replacing English during our next conference,” he said.
Swahili is already spoken in parts of southern Somalia and has gained wider use in recent years, influenced by cross-border movement and regional peacekeeping operations. Many Somalis who fled to Kenya during the civil war have since become fluent in Swahili and are now contributing to its spread back home.
Somalia joined the eight-nation EAC in 2024, seeking to boost economic growth and regional cooperation after decades of instability.