On Tuesday, a joint statement issued by the Ministries of Finance of the regional government of Somalia announced that they have stopped working with the Ministry of Finance of the Federal Government.
The Federal Ministry of Finance has been accused of breaking the agreements previously signed by the Federation and the States, related to the unification of the Somali government’s budget.
These 5 agreements were signed by both parties in 2019 and 2020.
The Federal Government is said to have stopped the money it used to subsidize the budget of the regional governments, which the Mogadishu based government receives from the World Bank and the IMF.
When it became clear that the Ministry of Finance of the Federal Government of Somalia has deliberately violated the agreements mentioned above, from today 30th August, 2022 the Ministries of Finance of the Member States of the Federal Government of Somalia; Puntland, Jubbaland, Galmudug, South-West and Hirshabeele have suspended all cooperation with the Ministry of Finance of the Federal Government of Somalia while the Ministry returns to the framework of the law and the implementation of the agreements mentioned above.
The statement issued by the Ministries of Finance of the regional governments
In 2020, the IMF approved three-year arrangements under the Extended Credit Facility (ECF) and the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Somalia in the amount of US$395.5 million.
There are additional grants received by the Federal Government from the World Bank, the regional governments of Somalia said they did not receive the financial support.
In June 2022, The World Bank approved $143 million in International Development Assistance (IDA)* financing to help vulnerable Somalis overcome the escalating drought and food insecurity conditions across the country.
BY HABIBALADAN ABDI IBRAHIM
Horseed Media
