The Vision of Somaliland Becoming the Financial Services HUB of Horn of Africa.
A workshop on drawing the Strategic Roadmap of the abovementioned ambiguous goal was concluded in Hargeisa on 23 June 2019. As a first step towards the long road of improvement, the conference also discussed upgrading and enhancement of the status of current Financial Services in the country.
The two days’ workshop was organized by Somaliland Ministry of Finance and the County’s Central Bank. The purpose was to highlight and initiate the parameters of a long-term strategy aiming at making Somaliland the Financial Services HUB of Horn of Africa, a region largely failing in this front.
The Minister of Finance, Dr Saad A Shire, has outlined the current status of the financial services in the country in terms of the number and the strength of banking and non-banking service providers in the marketplace. He also emphasized the role required of the country’s private banks in Job Creation, Economic Growth and uplifting the status of Small & Medium businesses.
The Director of Somaliland Central Bank, Ali I Jama, has on his part focused on the importance of vibrant banking and non-banking financial services, like insurance, to the economic wellbeing of the nation. He told the audience that the central bank intends to create the statuary framework for an integrated, world-class banking system based on free marketing and fair competition concepts. He also stated that Somaliland has decided to adopt the vision to become the First Financial Services Hub of Horn of Africa. This conference was conducted as the first step towards drawing the relevant strategies, roadmaps, and deadlines.
Somaliland Vice President, Aburahman Zayli who delivered the closing note has emphasised that Somaliland is keen on implementing the Horn Banking HUB Concept, notwithstanding the challenges involved. All the speakers of the workshop recognized that in order to achieve this vision a lot has to be done; But they also underlined that Somaliland has the dedication and the drive required to achieve this daunting goal.
Observers believe that, on the one hand, Somaliland is not yet an internationally recognized sovereign nation and could face additional challenges in achieving the stated goal. On the other hand, the International Community is for all practical purposes dealing with Somaliland as De Facto Nation. On top of that, it is also worth noting the people of the part of the world have long established reputation of being quite industrious and indeed pride themselves on playing leading role in connecting the interiors of Africa to the outside world, over the centuries.
Only time will tell whether Somalilanders will capitalize on their centuries old “Traders Culture” and achieve the task ahead. But a lot as to be done, as this challenging target requires jumping many hurdles. Among others, we have to start from where others ended – we don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Somaliland needs to adopt and practice International standards in Accounting, International Commercial Law, Basil II Framework that governs the banking and other financial services such as insurance and leasing companies. Finally, the Somaliland Parliment has to pass the revised Investment Law and the Banking Act which will reportedly be based on Islamic Sharie Law.
In order make to the idea of the Financial Services HUB of The Horn of Africa workable and realistic, we also need to incorporate Banking knowledge and culture in the country’s education system right for the Primary levels. The universities should also provide and deliver State of the Art programs in International Law, International Accounting Standards (IFRS) and the Accounting Standards for Islamic in Financial Institution (AAOFIF), etc.
By Hassan Abdi Yousuf
Retired Senior Banker & Geopolitical Analyst
Hargeisa, Somaliland
