Top-down approaches in Somalia have not succeeded. There's no question. That's where the vast majority of external support has gone and that's where the vast majority of foreign aid dollars have been lost.
The federal government has a number of built-in problems. One is that it's essentially a constituency-free government. It resides in Mogadishu. It answers only to itself. It is the main catchment point for foreign aid, and as a result it attracts.... It does attract some really good people. There are some wonderful Somalis working in the government and trying very hard. They do have pockets of competence there, but generally it hasn't added up to anything more than chronic political paralysis and some of the worst corruption in the world.
The Somali National Army is not a true army; it is a set of divisions or brigades that answer to a clan commander. They are essentially clan paramilitaries that are not answering up a civilian chain of command. As a result, they are not trusted. In some cases, they are advancing clan interests at the expense of local populations, who turn to al Shabaab for protection.
Ironically, we provide support to an armed force that is driving people into al Shabaab's arms. That is about as frustrating a thing as you can tell a taxpayer.