Abdullahi Issa

Abdullahi Issa Mohamud (1922 – March 24, 1988) was a Somali politician. During the trusteeship period, he served as Prime Minister of Italian Somalia from February 29, 1956 to July 1, 1960. He is considered among the most important historical figures in Somalia.

Issa was born in the southern town of Afgooye in 1921. Issa, nicknamed "Bidaar," attended an Italian primary school in the capital as well as a local Qur'anic school (madrassah). He was still a student when World War II broke out.

At the age of sixteen, Issa moved to the port of Merca, where he worked as a postal clerk from 1939 to 1941. He later returned to Mogadishu and took a job with the Department of Economic Affairs. Issa was relieved of his duties following the British military occupation of Italian Somalia in the early 1940s. He then went into business for himself.

Issa joined the Somali Youth League (SYL) at its inception, following the turmoil of the war years. He exemplified the Somali political elite of the time: "young (age 38), intelligent, largely self-educated, confident, and determined." He quickly rose through the party's ranks to become one of its leaders. He was appointed to the SYL's central committee in 1948, and later as its Secretary-General.

Issa later traveled to Paris and New York as a SYL delegate to proclaim the Somali people's right to independence. He represented the SYL on the United Nations Trusteeship Council from 1950 to 1954. Following his election as a SYL deputy in the 1956 political elections, he was called to form Somalia's first government, becoming the country's first Prime Minister.

Re-elected as Premier in 1959, he also held the portfolios of Foreign Affairs, Interior, and Grace and Justice for a time. Issa was later appointed Foreign Minister in the government formed after Somalia's independence in July 1960. He participated in many international conventions in this capacity, including the United Nations General Assembly and conferences in Addis Abeba, among other cities. After the March 1964 general election, Issa was re-elected to the National Assembly as a SYL delegate for Beledweyne.

The Supreme Revolutionary Council (SRC) seized power a few years later. In 1974, the new military government appointed Issa as Somalia's Ambassador to Sweden. He held the position until early 1983, when he resigned from public office following a long political career.

Issa lived in Rome, Italy, during his retirement years. He died in March 1988 and was taken to Mogadishu for burial.