Lighthouses of Southern Somalia

Shaped something like a fish hook, Somalia is located on the Horn of Africa, the northeastern corner of the continent. The country was formed in 1960 by uniting the former British Somaililand, which faces north on the Gulf of Aden, with the former Italian Somaliland, which mostly faces east southeast on the Indian Ocean. This union has never been complete and since 1991 the country has been splintered by repeated secession and conflict. The Republic of Somaliland, which controls most of the former British Somaliland, declared its independence of Somalia in 1991 and has been seeking international recognition. Lighthouses of Somaliland are described on a separate page. For the rest of the country the Federal Government of Somalia, organized in 2012, is recognized by the United Nations and is attempting to create a federal union of semi-autonomous states..

In March 2024, following changes to the federal constitution enacted by the federal legislature, the government of the northern state of Puntland announced it was breaking ties with the federal government and would henceforth operate as if it were independent, although it continues to style itself as a state of Somalia. This limits the federal goverment's authority to the four states and the capital region south of Puntland. And its authority is quite limited since a large part of the interior in the hands of the Islamist Al-Shahaab movement., governing as the Ilslamic Emnirate of Somalia. The federal government does control most of the coast including the larger coastal communities.

Somali and Arabic are official languages in Somalia. Unlike Arabic, Somali is written in the Latin alphabet. The Somali word for a lighthouse is laydh; jasiirad is an island and dekedda is a harbor.

ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume D of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.

General Sources
Online List of Lights - Somalia East Coast - North and https://listoflights.org/leuchtfeuer?region=318
Photos by various photographers posted by Alexander Trabas.
Somali Civil War
This Wikipedia article includes an updated map showing the areas under the control of the federal government and the separatist governments..
Lighthouses in Somalia
Photos by various photographers available from Wikimedia.
World of Lighthouses - Somalia
Photos by various photographers available from Lightphotos.net.
Afrikanischen Leuchttürme auf historischen Postkarten
Historic postcard images posted by Klaus Huelse.
Lighthouses of Africa
Historic postcard images posted by Michel Forand.
Google Maps
Satellite view of souhern Somalia.


Barawa Light, Barawa, posted September 2025
Google Maps photo by marabout ski

Galmudug Lighthouse
Galmudug is a state in central Somalia formed in 2006. It includes the region of Galgaduud and the southern portion of Mudug, a region that has been effectively partitioned with the northern portion administered by Puntland. In 2011 Galmudug and Puntland signed an agreement to work together on security and economic issues and to fix the border between them.

Hobyo (Obbia)
Date unknown. Inactive; listed with focal plane 32 m (105 ft); three white flashes every 10 s. 10 m (33 ft) square cylindrical tower, originally painted with black and white horizontal bands. A fuzzy photo is at right and Google has a satellite view. Note: there are several "Obbia lighthouse" photos on the Internet that show misidentified towers. Located in Hobyo, a small town about 500 km (315 mi) northeast of Mogadishu. The town has no regular port facilities, only a small, partially-protected anchorage. Site status unknown. ARLHS SOM-008; Admiralty D7236; NGA 31088.

Hirshabelle (Middle Shabelle) Lighthouse
Hirshabelle is a state in south central Somalia formed theoretically in 2016 by combining the coastal region of Middle Shabelle with the inland region of Hiran. Both regions would prefer to be autonomous so the state government has been ineffective.

Adale (Cadale) (?)
Date unknown. Inactive; listed with focal plane 12 m (39 ft); white flash every 3 s. Short skeletal tower mounted on the east corner of a "residence." No photo available and no light is seen in an aerial view of the town. Google has a satellite view of the listed location. Adale or Cadale is a town about 150 km (95 mi) northeast of Mogadishu. The town has no regular port facilities. Site status unknown. Admiralty D7230; NGA 31092.

Hobyo Light
unattributed ex-Panoramio photo no longer online but found in a Google Images search

Mogadishu (Benadir Region) Lighthouse
Mogadishu, the national capital and former capital of Italian Somaliland, is a large city with a population estimated to be about 2.4 million. It is generally under the control of the Federal Government, which had driven out Al Shahaab forces by the end of 2011. The Mogadishu Port Authority operates the country's largest port.

Moqdishu (Mogadishu) Main (2?)
1912. (station established 1903). Inactive; listed with focal plane 74 m (243 ft), white flash every 12.5 s. 17 m (56 ft) square tower with lantern and gallery. Liibaan Nuur's 2025 photo at right shows part of the lighthouse; it seems to be in good condition. The library of the Swiss Institute of Technology posted a 1912 photo, a more distant historic view (lighthouse at lower left) is available, and Google has a satellite view. Intended as a landfall light this historic lighthouse is located next to a major street adjacent to the Ministry of Information, Posts and Telecommunications; this is on a ridge about 1.5 km (1 mi) northwest of the harbor. Site status unknown. ARLHS SOM-007; Admiralty D7218; NGA 31096.
Mogadishu First Range (Betel Raz Range) Front
Date unknown. Active; focal plane 15 m (49 ft); continuous red light. 15 m (49 ft) square tower painted with black and white horizontal bands. No photo available but Google has a satellite view. This is the approach range for the port. The rear light, a smaller tower, is atop a building 180 m (200 yd) northwest. Located on the waterfront east of the port entrance. Site status unknown. Admiralty D7220; NGA 31100.

Mogadishu Main Light, Mogadishu, July 2025
Google Maps photo by Liibaan Nuur

South West State (Lower Shabelle) Lighthouses
The South West State was established by the Federal Government in 2009 but it exists largely in theory; much of its territory has been controlled by Al Shaahab forces.

Merka (Merca, Marka) Range Rear (2?)
Date unknown (station established 1912). Inactive. 17 m (56 ft) white round concrete tower. Lightphotos.net has Hans de Graaf's 2013 photo at right, Forand has a historic postcard view, and Google has a distant satellite view. Huelse has a different postcard view showing a skeletal concrete tower. The front light is on a post near the shore. Merca is a town 109 km (68 mi) southwest of Mogadishu. The area was controlled by Al Shahaab for several years but it was recaptured by the Transitional Government in August 2012. Al Shahaab reoccupied the town briefly in 2016. Merca has no protected harbor, only an open roadstead. Note: accurate information on the history of this range is lacking, and this has led to considerable confusion. A black and white banded tower seen in a Lightphotos.net photo and many other photos is widely interpreted as a range lighthouse but this seems unlikely. Located on the west side of Merka, above the roadstead. Site status unknown. ARLHS SOM-006.
Merka (Merca, Marka) Range Rear (3?)
Date unknown (station established 1912). Active (?); focal plane 35 m (115 ft); white light, 2 s on, 6.5 s off. 17 m (56 ft) round white concrete tower. No photo available but the tower is possibly centered in Bing's satellite view. Located in the city about 400 m (1/4 mi) north of the historic lighthouse. Site status unknown. Admiralty D7212.1; NGA 31140.
Barawa (Baraawa, Brava)
1912. Inactive. Approx. 18 m (56 ft) square concrete tower with gallery; the lantern has vanished. A 2025 photo is a the top of this page,. Ömers has a 2023 photo, Muhamed Ahmed Nahdei has a 2021 photo, Ibrahim Xasan has a 2017 distant view, Saalah Baana has a fuzzy photo, Abdullahi Kassim has a 1983 photo, Huelse has a historic postcard view of the lighthouse when it was active, and Google has a satellite view. Obviously endangered. Barawa was under Al Shahaab's control from 2009 to 2014 and functioned as the group's capital. The central government's control remains precarious in this area. Located on an island sheltering the harbor of Barawa, a port about 160 km (100 mi) southwest of Mogadishu. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS SOM-002.

Range Rear Light, Merka, November 2013
Lightphotos.nrt photo by Hans de Graaf

Jubaland Lighthouses
Jubaland is a state at the southwestern corner of Somalia. Much of Jubaland was formerly claimed by Britain as part of Kenya but Britain ceded its claims to Italy in 1924. The region had been controlled by Al Shahaab but in 2010 a new administration took power, with Kenyan support, and declared the region to be an autonomous state similar to Puntland. The Jubaland administration and the transitional government in Mogadishu reached an agreement in August 2013 recognizing the autonomous status of the territory. The Port of Kismayo has a checkered history; orginally built with U.S. assistance it served in the 1970s as a base for the Soviet Navy. It remains very active today.

Juba River (Fiume Giuba)
1912(?). Inactive. 9 m (30 ft) black square masonry tower on white truncated pyramid. No photo available. Marcus Koehne contributed the 2019 photo seen at right and the station is shown in a Bing satellite view. Located at the mouth of the Juba River about 16 km (10 mi) northeast of Kismayo (Kismayu). Site status unknown. ARLHS SOM-004; Admiralty D6852; NGA 31156.
Passo Nord (Range Front)
Date unknown. Active(?); focal plane about 17 m (56 ft); green light occulting onec every 2 s. Approx. 10 m (33 ft) white tower. Ali Yusuf has a very distant view and Google has a satellite view. The Kolina Rojoota Light, 9 km (5.75 mi) to the southwest, is the rear light of this approach range. Located on the nortern tip of the island of Tartaruuga (Isola dei Serpenti), about 1.5 km (1 mi) southeast of Kismayo (Kismayu); the island is connected to the mainland by a causeway. Site status unknown. Admiralty D6842.9; NGA 31161.
Isola dei Serpenti (Kismayu, Kismayo, Seerbenti)
Date unknown. Apparently in ruins but listed with focal plane 35 m (115 ft); white flash every 4 s, also a continuous red light of shorter range. Approx. 20 m (66 ft) round masonry tower adjoining a masonry keeper's house. No current photo available. Alamy.com has a commercially available photo of the intect lighthouse. The lighthouse appears ruined in Google's satellite view; the keeper's house is unroofed but the tower appears to be standing beisde it. The regional capital of Kismayo is a city of about 90,000 residents. The city has an active harbor but the satellite view shows no evidence of activity around the light station. Located on an island Site status unknown. ARLHS SOM-010; Admiralty D6842; NGA 31160.
Passo Interno Range Front
Date unknown. Active(?); focal plane unknown; green light occulting once every 2 s. Approx. 5 m (17 ft) round concrete tower painted with black and white horizontal bands. No photo available but Google has a satellite view. This is an approach range for the harbor sheltered by Seerbenti island. Located on a hillside on the minland northwest of the historic lighthouse. Site status unknown. Admiralty D6844; NGA 31163.

Juba River Light, May 2019
photo copyright Marcus Koehne; used by permission
Passo Interno Range Rear
Date unknown. Active(?); focal plane 27 m (89 ft); quick-flashing green light. Approx. 10 m (33 ft) round concrete tower painted with black and white horizontal bands. No photo available but Google has a satellite view. Located 360 m (1/4 mi) northwest of the front light. Site status unknown. Admiralty D6844.1; NGA 31163.1.
Passo di Levante Range Front
Date unknown. Active(?); focal plane unknown; green light occulting once every 2 s. Approx. 5 m (17 ft) triangular concrete tower painted with black and white horizontal bands. No photo available but Google has a satellite view. This is an approach range for Kismayo. Located in a deserted area about 8 km (5 mi) southwest of Kismayo. Site status unknown. Admiralty D6843.1; NGA 31162.
Kolina Rojoota (Kismayo Common Range Rear)
Date unknown. Active(?); focal plane unknown; quick-flashing green light. Approx. 10 m (33 ft) triangular concrete tower painted with black and white horizontal bands. No photo available but Google has a satellite view. Located in a deserted area about 8 km (5 mi) southwest of Kismayo. Site status unknown. Admiralty D6843; NGA 31161.5.

Information available on lost lighthouses:

Notable faux lighthouses:

Adjoining pages: North: Puntland | South: Kenya

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Posted July 1, 2005. Checked and revised February 15, 2026. Lighthouses: 14. Site copyright 2026 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.