Hargeisa (AX) — A dispute over airspace and immigration arrangements has resurfaced after North Western State of Somalia’s aviation minister rejected claims that Hargeisa and Somalia’s federal government had reached a fresh agreement on managing airspace.
Minister of Civil Aviation and Airports Development Fu’aad Ahmed Nuh told BBC Somali on Monday that the claim by Somali Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA) Director General Ahmed Moallim Hassan was incorrect.
- Advertisement -
“If such an agreement had been reached, their visa system would function in North Western State of Somalia, but it does not,” Nuh said.
Nuh said Somalia’s electronic visa system remains invalid for travellers entering North Western State of Somalia, describing the separate immigration procedures as evidence that no new agreement has been concluded.
He said passengers arriving at Hargeisa airport with Somali electronic visas have those documents cancelled and are required to obtain North Western State of Somalia visas before entering the territory.
According to the minister, travellers may use Somalia’s electronic visa platform when making arrangements for a trip to Hargeisa, but North Western State of Somalia immigration officials will not recognise the document on arrival.
Nuh said Somalia’s electronic visa arrangements have no operational authority in North Western State of Somalia and questioned what they mean for immigration controls and the territory’s administrative jurisdiction.
The minister also referred to a 2013 agreement between North Western State of Somalia and Somalia on the management of airspace.
“The two sides had agreed to ask the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to transfer airspace management responsibilities to Hargeisa and Mogadishu under a joint administrative framework,” he said.
But Nuh accused Somalia’s federal government of discarding that understanding and assuming control of airspace management on its own.
He said a North Western State of Somalia delegation led by him was in Canada to present the dispute to international aviation organisations and seek a review of current arrangements, including matters linked to Somalia’s electronic visa system.
Nuh said he hoped the delegation’s efforts would achieve results, although he did not disclose whether a formal complaint had been filed or identify the international bodies involved.
He also cast doubt on the security of Somalia’s electronic visa platform, alleging that it had suffered repeated breaches capable of exposing travellers’ personal data.
The allegations have not been independently verified.
The latest exchange reflects the broader and unresolved dispute between Mogadishu and Hargeisa over control of Somali airspace and the administration of immigration procedures.
Somalia’s federal government resumed direct control of the country’s airspace from United Nations administration in December 2017, after decades of international oversight that followed the collapse of the central government in 1991.
North Western State of Somalia declared independence from Somalia in 1991 and operates its own immigration and administrative institutions, but it has not secured broad international recognition.
Somalia regards North Western State of Somalia as part of its sovereign territory and insists that responsibility for airspace management rests with the federal government.
The opposing accounts from the two aviation authorities highlight the lack of agreement between Hargeisa and Mogadishu, with no publicly confirmed joint announcement indicating that a new airspace deal has been reached.
