The opposition leader of the self-proclaimed Republic of Somaliland, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, won the presidential election in the region.
Popularly known as Irro, he won with 64% of the votes to become the sixth president of Somaliland since it broke away from Somalia in 1991.
The 69-year-old, former Speaker of the Somaliland Parliament, defeated the incumbent Musa Abdi Bihi, who received 35% of the vote.
While campaigning, Irro said his party would revise a controversial deal to lease Ethiopia a 20-kilometer (12-mile) embankment off its coast for 50 years to set up a naval base — a deal that has sparked regional rifts.
As part of the agreement, announced on New Year’s Day, Somaliland expects to be recognized by Addis Ababa as an independent nation.
This has angered Somalia, which considers Somaliland part of its territory – and has said it considers the deal an act of aggression.
Irro has never rejected an agreement, but when discussing it he used diplomatic language, suggesting a change in approach.
Somaliland is located in a strategic part of the world, and is seen as the gateway to the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea.
Despite its relative stability and regular democratic elections, it has not been recognized internationally.
“We are all winners, Somaliland has won,” Irro said, praising everyone for the peaceful November 13 vote witnessed by diplomats from nine European countries and the US.
He also thanked outgoing President Bihi, who led the rebel region since 2017.
Critics say Bihi has lost support because of his paternalistic style – saying he had no respect for public opinion at a time when economic problems undermined the value of the country’s currency.
The president-elect, who will be sworn in on December 14, is seen as an unifying figure.
But he said he would continue Somaliland’s relationship with Taiwan – which China claims to have control over.
When the two established diplomatic relations in 2021 they angered China and Somalia.
Somaliland is a British protectorate that joined the rest of Somalia on 1 July 1960.
In the conflict that led to the overthrow of President Siad Barre in 1991, tens of thousands of people were killed in Somaliland and its main city Hargeisa was completely destroyed by aerial bombardment.
In the chaos that followed Barre’s departure, Somaliland declared its independence and has since rebuilt the city, creating its own currency, institutions and security structures.
This is often compared to Somalia, which has been torn apart by anarchy for decades and still faces many challenges, including Islamist sects, and does not hold direct elections.
Born in Hargeisa, Irro went to school in Somalia and later attended college in the US – graduating with a master’s degree in business administration.
After leaving university he pursued a diplomatic career, joining the Somali foreign service in 1981.
He was sent to Moscow where he worked in the Somali embassy. During the civil war, he became the country’s acting ambassador to the former Soviet Union.
Many people fled Somalia during the conflict, which tore the nation in half, including Irro’s family who went to live in Finland.
He was able to be reunited with them there and received Finnish citizenship.
Irro returned to Somaliland a few years later, entering politics in 2002 as the founder of the opposition Justice and Welfare party (UCID).
He went on to serve as speaker of parliament for 12 years.
It was during this period that he founded the Wadani Party, which has grown into a powerful political force in Somaliland and won this year’s election on his ticket.
Additional reports by Mzafin Dahir and BBC Monitoring.
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