Borama is the largest city in the Awdal region, close to the Ethiopian border at about 1,430 metres above sea level. Surrounding hills and valleys and more rain than the lowlands give it a green landscape and a cool climate.

Borama is known as a centre of learning, home to Amoud University, and as a trading town linking Awdal with Ethiopia.

Somaliland declared independence in 1991; the Federal Government of Somalia considers it part of Somalia, and it is not recognised as a state by the United Nations or most countries.

In the Middle Ages the area was part of the Adal Sultanate, and ruined towns such as Amud nearby have yielded Chinese porcelain and old coins. The modern town grew in the early 20th century under British rule.

In 1933 Sheikh Abdurahman Sheikh Nur devised the Borama script (also called the Gadabuursi script) for writing Somali here. The 1993 Borama conference elected Mohamed Haji Ibrahim Egal as president and adopted a national charter.

Amoud University — whose first entrance exam was held in 1997, with degree programmes starting in 1998 — was among the first universities founded after the war. Its large student population gives the city a lively feel, and farming and herding traditions sit side by side.

Borama's economy relies on rain-fed farming (sorghum and maize), livestock, cross-border trade with Ethiopia, and education and health services.