Visiting United Kingdom (UK) Minister of International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Grant Shapps…
Visiting United Kingdom (UK) Minister of International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Grant Shapps has pledged his government’s continued support to Somalia as the country continues to recover from the over two decades of civil war.
Mr Shapps arrived in Mogadishu and met the country’s top leaders including President Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud and Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Sharmarke. Talks concerned the elections expected to be held in the country in 2016, reconciliation, and building of a national army.
However, a statement issued by Britain’s Department for International Development (DFID) on Friday provided insight into the discussions, sayings Shapps underscored to the President the UK’s strong programme of support to stabilize and develop the nation.
“Somalia remains at the heart of the UK government’s foreign policy priorities, which includes meeting the country’s crucial humanitarian and development needs. Supporting the creation of a secure, stable and prosperous Somalia is vital for the Somali people, the region and the wider world. This is not only the right thing to do: it is firmly in the UK’s own national interest.”
Meanwhile the UK minister visited self-declared region of Somaliland and announced a new support for renewable energy and improvements to water supply after meeting its leader.
Following the establishment of the Federal Government of Somalia in 2012, British Prime Minister David Cameron welcomed the new administration and re-affirmed Britain’s continued support for the Somali authorities.
In 2013, Britain reopened its embassy in Mogadishu which was closed in 1991 following the eruption of the civil war and most recently appointed a new ambassador.
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