The Turkish parliament formally approved a grant agreement with the Somali government, as lawmakers praised the country’s growing economic, security and development cooperation with the government in Mogadishu.
The agreement provides Somalia with a financial grant of up to $30 million. The decision was made through presidential decree number 11262, after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signed the agreement on April 30.
According to the official text of the agreement, the document was signed on April 1 in the capital, Mogadishu, by Turkey’s Ambassador to Somalia Alper Aktaş, while the Somali government was represented by Finance Minister Bihi Iman Cige.
The agreement stipulates that Turkey will provide Somalia with a financial grant of up to $30 million, which will be paid in monthly installments of no more than $2.5 million per month. The statement added that the funds would be used to support “budgetary support and capacity building of government institutions.”
The parliament also approved Turkey’s payment of the cost and land for a new embassy in Ankara, which Somalia is building, at a cost of $6 million.
During the parliamentary debate, lawmakers from across political parties discussed Ankara’s growing role in Somalia, where it has become the country’s largest investor and strategic partner over the past decade.
Cemalettin Kani Torun, a Bursa MP from the New Path Party, said that Turkish exports to Somalia reached $273 million, while direct investment by Turkish companies exceeded $100 million.
“These figures did not come about by chance,” said MP Torun. “They are the result of a long-term effort and the cooperation of many parties.”
He also dismissed accusations that Turkey’s presence in Somalia is colonialism or that the country is being controlled, stating that Ankara’s relations are based on mutual respect, mutual benefit and a policy of ‘collaboration and win-win’.
However, the Somali public has little information about Ankar’s relations and economic agreements with the leadership of the federal government as the level of transparency in the Somali government is very weak and that creates a lot of questions about the fairness of these contracts and the legality of the transactions. Is it indeed a “win-win solution”?! or the opposite. Because we know that the Turkish government has taken the role of exploration, exploitation, of Somali oil and gas as well as marketing responsibility similarly Turkish finished goods are imported in Somalia.
so, what amount of money will go to The Somali people? and How? moreover, the federal government institutions lack check and balance systems, and they don’t share with public what is going on.
The Turkish government has been supporting Somalia since 2009 and indeed contributed a lot of positive development in Somalia, but there were enormous corruption and mismanagement in the federal government and its leadership since it comes to the power. As result of widespread corruption and frauds in the federal system the Somali people lost their trust for unelected public officials who mostly come to the power through corruption, because they are not accountable to the public.
Written by: Omar Ahmed Malin