Diaspora-driven Development in Stateless Somalia- All Relationships Are Local Relationships

This thesis argues that despite the absence of a government, Somalia's commercial diaspora has been able to not only cope and devise creative solutions to replace certain critical services lost in the vacuum left by the collapse of the government, but also in facilitating a degree of development as well. This development is shaped and directed by the endogenous cultural attributes of Somali society, and contribute to improved standards of living and livelihoods for certain sectors of Somali society that would otherwise be worse-off.