Home Tags Posts tagged with "SOMALIA"
Tag:

SOMALIA

AFRICA NEWSEastern AfricaEconomyUncategorized

Somalia’s economic potential under the spotlight

by Editor
written by Editor

Somalia’s economic potential has been under the spotlight for the past two days at a gathering of the Somali government, international partners, local entrepreneurs and foreign firms, with the goal of highlighting opportunities for business with international companies. 

“The Somalia Economic Conference marks a pivotal moment in our nation’s history. It is a declaration of our commitment to chart a new course towards economic prosperity and a brighter future for all Somalis – we invite you to join us on this transformative journey to invest in Somalia and to partner with our private sector,” the country’s Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Bare said at the opening on Tuesday.

His views were echoed by the UN Secretary-General’s Deputy Special Representative for Somalia, George Conway who said “I look forward to seeing tangible results from this conference, especially new business partnerships that will help trigger economic growth for the country in the long term, that will create jobs and economic opportunities, and which will improve socio-economic conditions for all Somali people.”

Others in attendance included Somalia’s Deputy Prime Minister Salah Jama, and the Italian Ambassador to Somalia, Alberto Vecchi, in addition to representatives from Somali businesses and business associations. 

Somalia is widely considered to have immense economic potential from its agricultural and aquaculture sectors, but insecurity and other challenges, such as the humanitarian crisis stemming from the climate crisis, hampering efforts to achieve this potential.

 According to the World Bank, its Gross Domestic Product is forecast to rebound to 2.8 per cent this year and increase to 3.7 percent next year. 

The Somali Economic Conference was organized by the Federal Government of Somalia’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry and the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The event was financed by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) as part of its efforts to increase economic opportunities and job creation in Somalia through the creation of synergies between the Somali and the Italian private sectors. 

“Italian enterprises are recognized as central actors in the Italian system of development cooperation and play an increasingly important role in the effectiveness of AICS’ interventions. Our approach is to promote actions that can effectively lead to co-development and mutual benefits, such as the event we are witnessing today,” the head of AICS’ regional office in Nairobi, Guiseppe Grandi, told the gathering. 

Also involved in the gathering were elements of the Government of Italy, the Somali Chamber of Commerce and Industry, IBS Bank, the European Union Delegation to Somalia and the UN Development Programme (UNDP). 

UNIDO has been working extensively with Somalia’s private sector, primarily with developing local businesses and seeking international partnerships. 

It has noted that the private sector – which has had to face the hardships of insecurity, climate shocks and the COVID-19 pandemic – needs to be better networked with international businesses for its long-term growth. 

In his remarks at the event on Tuesday, the Managing Director of UNIDO’s Directorate for SDG Innovation and Economic Transformation, Berger Gunther, expressed hope that Somali entrepreneurs will take advantage of the conference and the foreign investors from Italy present to strike new business partnerships. 

The Somalia Economic Conference included hosting the 2nd Italy-Somalia Business and Trade Forum on Tuesday, and the 1st Somalia Private Sector Partnership Meet today

Source; Africanews.com

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
AgricultureBusinessEconomyKenya News

Miraa exports to Somalia hit Sh4bn in three months

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

Kenya’s miraa exports to Somalia have earned the country Sh4 billion in three months since the resumption of sales of the stimulant to the Horn of Africa nation in July this year.

Head of Miraa Pyrethrum and other Industrial Crops Felix Mutwiri says Kenya has so far exported 1.4 million kilogrammes of miraa after the two countries resolved an earlier tiff.

The move comes as a major boost to the government in terms of foreign exchange earnings and a source of livelihood to growers who had been hit hard when Mogadishu slapped a ban in 2019.

“We have so far exported 1.46 million kilogrammes of miraa since we resumed the Somalia market in July and we are still in talks to increase the volumes in coming days,” said Mr Mutwiri. A kilogramme of miraa in Somali is now fetching $23 (Sh2,760), which translates to about Sh4 billion for the entire consignment.

Earnings have, however, been slowed down by caps on the tonnage that Kenya is allowed to export to Somalia. Previously, Nairobi was allowed to sell 40 tones every day but currently can only ship a maximum of 19 tones daily.

ALSO READ: ROAM launches it’s First Mass Transit Electric Bus In Nairobi

Mr Mutwiri said they are addressing the issue with the Joint Commission of Corporation- an entity bringing together officials from Kenya and Somalia to iron out the issue.

“We are waiting for the new officials at the ministry to settle in the office first before we pick up the issues aimed at resolving the current challenges,” he said.

He said the directorate has, in collaboration with the Kenya Bureau of Standards developed Miraa Industry Code of Practice KNWA 2940:2021 that will guide farmers on good agricultural practices at the production level and post-harvest handling and they are now sensitizing miraa growing counties to embrace it.

SOURCE: Business daily

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
BusinessEastern AfricaEconomyUncategorized

Somalia Renews Bid to Join the EAC Trade Bloc

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

Somalia has renewed its bid to join the East African Community (EAC) trade bloc, after the country’s newly elected President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud arrived in Arusha to attend the ongoing 22nd Ordinary East Africa Community Heads of State Summit.

”I am here to make a formal bid for Somalia to join the East African Community,” Mohamud said. 

The leader had initiated the bid during his first term between 2012 and 2017 together with DRC, but members declined due to war and disorder in Somalia

The inclusion of Somalia in the regional trading bloc will make EAC a plus 300 million population market after the addition of DRC pushed it to 290 million. 

It is also likely to push the region’s combined GDP above KSh30 trillion, from the current Ksh29 trilliom after the addition of DRC.

SOURCES: The Kenya wall street

ALSO READ: First miraa consignment set to leave for Somalia on Sunday
0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
AfricaBusinessEastern AfricaKenyaTransportation & Logisitics

Kenya, Somalia resume flights and trade in Miraa

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

Kenya and Somalia have announced the resumption of normal business between Nairobi and Mogadishu after a brief hiatus.

In a joint communiqué released after a meeting between President Uhuru Kenya of Kenya and his Somalia counterpart Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the two neighboring countries have committed to work together on areas of mutual interest to deepen bilateral relations.

Accordingly, the Kenya Airways (KQ) scheduled flights to Mogadishu will resume immediately based on the existing Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA).

The two countries have also agreed to facilitate, diversify and promote trade and economic cooperation between the two countries.

“The two presidents…directed the immediate market access of fish and fish products from Somalia to Kenya and vice versa, the resumption of trade in Khat (miraa) from Kenya to Somalia, to resume with immediate effect,” the statement read

And in order to ease the movement of people and enhance trade in goods and services, President Kenyatta and his visitor Sheikh Mohamud have also agreed on the immediate opening of the border between the two countries.

ALSO READ: Equity, AFCTA Ink Deal To Accelerate Sh678bn Recovery Stimulus Plan

“The two Presidents…directed that the Joint Commission for Co-operation (JCC) between Kenya and Somalia be convened in Mogadishu in August 2022 to discuss and agree on matters of mutual interest such as joint security activities, defense, agriculture, trade, intelligence exchange, health, education, training in various fields, and continuous review of the visa regime,” read part of the Communiqué

Given the security situation, the two Presidents have also recommitted to the fight against terrorism. In order to ensure success, Kenyatta and Sheikh Mohamud directed the security agencies of the two countries to coordinate their efforts in the fight to ensure the safety and protection of the citizens of both countries, while upscaling the fight against terrorism.

To facilitate entry and exit of/from Nairobi and Mogadishu, relevant agencies have been directed to implement the issuance of Courtesy Visas free of charge/gratis, on arrival, for Dignitaries, Senators, and Diplomats who hold Diplomatic Passports and a Note Verbale from the respective Ministries of Foreign Affairs.

“For holders of Somali Service Passports, Courtesy Visas free of charge/gratis on arrival will be issued within Forty – Eight (48) hours, after completion of Online Visa Application accompanied by a Note Verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation,” said the statement signed by Kenya’s Foreign Affair Principal Secretary Macharia Kamau and his Somalia counterpart Mohamed Ali.

Source: Kbc

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
AfricaFEATURED NEWSFinance & ServicesWestern Africa

IMF extends duration of aid programme for Somalia

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has agreed to extend the duration of its financial aid programme to Somalia.

The fund’s aid was due to end this month if a new administration is not in place, an official said.

The decision comes after Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud was elected as Somalia’s new leader during the weekend.

The IMF’s three-year $400 million (€380 million) aid programme was due to expire automatically on 17 May if elections were not held leading to a new administration in the poor country, which is plagued by an insurgency by radical Islamists, the Shebab.

Last week, the IMF agreed to the Mogadishu government’s request for a three-month extension of the programme, until 17 August.

“The extension will allow time to confirm policy agreements with the new government and confirm funding assurances with development partners,” Laura Jaramillo Mayor, the IMF’s Somalia mission chief, told AFP in an email Thursday evening.

International partners have welcomed the election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud, calling on him to take charge of the problems of the Horn of Africa country.

Under the IMF programme, Somalia’s debt could be reduced to $557 million, or about 6% of estimated GDP, Jaramillo said in an interview with AFP in February.

This debt reduction could then allow Mogadishu to attract more funds from international partners to develop its private sector.

Source: African News

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Eastern AfricaPolitics

Somalia seeks three month extension of its IMF support programme

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

Somalia’s government has asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to extend its financial support by three months to Aug. 17, the head of the IMF’s country mission told Reuters. The Washington based fund warned in February that Somalia’s delayed legislative and presidential elections put the renewal of the three-year budget support programme, worth nearly $400 million, at risk of automatic expiration this month. The presidential election, which is carried out by lawmakers, is now set for May 15. The government has written to the IMF’s board asking for more time to conclude talks on the budget support programme’s renewal, said Laura Jaramillo, IMF’s mission head.

“The extension is expected to provide the time needed to confirm policy understandings with the new government after presidential elections are completed,” she said. She did not comment on whether the automatic expiration of the programme will be extended. Officials at Somalia’s ministry of finance and the central bank were not immediately available for comments. The conclusion of negotiations for renewal of the programme is also a required part of a deal to slash Somalia’s debt from more than $5 billion to around a 10th of that.

Source: Reuters

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Eastern AfricaPolitics

General Gebremedhim Fikadu Dies in Prison; Addis Ababa 

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

A Tigrayan general and former commander in the African Union mission in Somalia died in custody after he was arrested along with other senior officers in the early days of the war in 2020. The rebel authorities in Tigray are calling for an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding his death.

General Gebremedhin Fikadu, alias “Wedi Necho”, was a dominant figure in the Ethiopian army. On Tuesday, the Tigrayan authorities’ External Affairs Office called him a “martyr”. His death, the External Affairs office said, follows the suspicious deaths of two other generals as well as “hundreds” of Tigrayan officers and soldiers.

The former sector commander with Amisom, he was the head of the Federal Troops Communications Department when the war broke out. Previously, he had commanded Ethiopian troops in Liberia and then on the Badmé front, during the war against Eritrea between 1999 and 2000. He was arrested on November 11, 2020 with 16 other senior officers from the start of operations in Tigray. They were accused of having sabotaged communications between the federal command and the northern commander. General Wedi Necho, in particular, was accused of having sought to send explosives to the rebel authorities. Last year, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission met him in prison and declared that his conditions of detention was “acceptable”.

Source: Allafrica

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Eastern AfricaPolitics

Presidential candidates to address Parliament on May 11 and 12, Somali Parliament Says

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

The Somali parliament announced Thursday that the long-awaited presidential election will finally take place on May 15 and that 329 lawmakers from both houses, 54 from the Senate or Upper House and 275 from the Lower House will elect the country’s tenth president.

The presidential election date will coincide with a historic day as the country will also commemorate the 79th anniversary of the Somali Youth League formed on May 15, 1943 by 13 young activists who spearheaded the struggle for a united and independent Somalia in the 1940s and 1950s.

The committee said the presidential candidates will address Parliament on May 11 and 12 on their policies ahead of the vote. The presidential election which is 15 months behind schedule comes after Somalia concluded parliamentary elections in April.

Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed known as Farmajo, whose term in office officially ended on February 8, 2021, has been under pressure after the election date passed without resolution of issues related to how the vote would have been conducted in Somalia.

Source: African News

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Eastern AfricaPolitics

10 of Burundi’s soldiers confirmed killed in Al-shabab attack in Somalia

by Radarr Africa
written by Radarr Africa

On Tuesday, 10 Burundian peacekeepers were killed in an attack by Al-Shabaab jihadists on an African Union (AU) base in Somalia, Burundi’s army said on Wednesday. Twenty-five soldiers were injured and five are missing while 20 Al-Shabaab militants were killed, in a statement. It was the first attack on a peacekeeping base since the AU Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) replaced the previous AMISOM force on April 1.

AU forces sent in helicopter gunships after the pre-dawn attack on a camp housing Burundian troops near Ceel Baraf, a village some 160 kilometers (100 miles) northeast of the capital Mogadishu, military officials and witnesses said. A local military commander, Mohamed Ali, told AFP on Tuesday that the assault began with a car bombing before a furious firefight broke out.

Two Burundian military sources told AFP that 45 peacekeepers were reported as dead or missing, with 25 others injured. “The provisional toll is 45 soldiers killed or missing, including a battalion commander colonel,” a Burundian military source told AFP on condition of anonymity, while a second source backed up the figures. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it had taken control of the camp and that 173 soldiers had been killed.

The Al Qaeda linked Islamist militants have been waging a deadly insurgency against Somalia’s fragile central government for more than a decade.

Somalia’s government condemned the “heinous” attack and appealed to the international community to do more to support Somali forces and ATMIS “in effectively combatting terrorism”.

The bloodshed highlights the security woes in the troubled Horn of Africa country, which is also embroiled in a deep political crisis over delayed elections and faces the threat of famine. Al-Shabaab fighters controlled Mogadishu until 2011 when they were driven out by AU troops but they still hold territory in the countryside and frequently attack civilian, military and government targets in Mogadishu and elsewhere.

Source: African News

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail