Somalia: Kenya announces to lift ban on Somali-owned remittance firms

Abdirahman. A

ShareTweet

A ban on remittance firms operating in Kenya imposed two months ago will be lifted, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has announced.
In his message to the nation on the commencement of the holy month of Ramadan, Mr Kenyatta said that he had ordered the Central Bank of Kenya to create policies which will ‘’guide’’ the remittances.
“I direct the Central Bank of Kenya to immediately issue comprehensive regulations that guide the operation of MRPs, upon which their suspension would be lifted,” he said, adding that he had received proposal of appealing a lift on the ban.
In April, Kenya decided to shut down key 13 remittance firms operating in the East African nation and froze the accounts of 85-Somali businessmen & individuals suspected of funding the terror group al-Shabaab following deadly assault on Garissa College University that claimed the lives of 148 people, mostly students.
Federal government of Somalia, Human Rights advocates and International Humanitarian agencies condemned the move, calling for the Kenyan authorities to reconsider its decision. They regarded it as unfair and based on unfounded accusations.
Since the ban was imposed, it has had major impacts on the entire Somali community living in Kenya with almost all of them relying on money sent from abroad.
Horseed Media