Hargeisa- The National Electoral Commission today declared that the social media will be shut down in Somaliland. The shutting down will start at 6 pm on 13th November, until election results are declared.

Somaliland will hold a presidential election on 13 November.

"We ordered telecommunication companies to shut down social media, and they accepted it,’ Saed Ali Muse, the spokesperson of the Commission said.

The ocial media sites that will be blocked include Facebook, Twitter, Viber, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

Twenty-one days of campaign rallies ended today.

It is the first time Somaliland shuts down social media, although this is a practice increasedly used by dictatorial regimes in Africa.