International and Civil Implications of an Unrecognized Country: The Case of Somaliland

• In Event: States and Sovereignty

Abstract

Numerous countries in the world today lack international recognition, even as their governments operate with autonomy, administrative capacity, and civil societies comparable to recognized states. Yet, because many social scientists study recognized states, there is limited attention to how nonrecognition shapes civil society operations. I conducted 113 interviews and 6 weeks of ethnography with Somaliland civil society organizations in 2025 and 2025 to answer these questions: How does Somaliland’s de facto state status constrain its civil society? How is this relationship mediated by the de facto government’s actions as it operates with this status? In brief, I find that de facto status uniquely constrains Somaliland civil society’s resource mobilization, networks and mobility, and access to mechanisms of government accountability. Ultimately, this paper argues that we must assess functional units of governance and their relations, moving beyond state-centric theories and models that prematurely dismiss statehood as irrelevant to more precisely understand the state of international affairs and development.

Author

• Clare E Bath, University of Notre Dame