Understanding Statebuilding Traditional Governance and the Modern State in Somaliland

'This book provides a wide-ranging and accessible analysis of contemporary state-building in Somaliland. The institutional and democratic gains that have been made are all the more noteworthy because they have been secured without international support or recognition. While invaluable to the area specialist, because of its challenge to conventional wisdom, the book is highly recommended for students and scholars of state-building more generally.' Mark Duffield, University of Bristol, UK 'This book provides a theoretically sophisticated and empirically rich answer to the question how did Somaliland do it? Its fascinating and original exploration of hybrid government, and the ways in which Somaliland reconciled domestic needs and external demands, makes it a must-read for anyone interested not only in unrecognised states but also in state-building and state formation more generally.' Nina Caspersen, University of York, UK '... valuable for theoretical and regional specialists alike, showing a side the region often unseen and bridging the gap in literature between the traditional and the modern, much like what is happening on the ground in Somaliland.' African Studies Quarterly