Nairobi (AX) – A regional trade roadmap for the Horn of Africa has cleared a key technical hurdle after experts from five countries reached agreement during a two-day validation workshop in Nairobi.
Liban Obsiye, executive director of Somalia’s National Climate Fund and secretary of the Horn of Africa Initiative (HoAI), co-chaired the meeting with representatives of Germany’s KFW.
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Trade specialists from Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan reviewed the proposed roadmap, set priorities and prepared it for consideration at a ministerial meeting due to take place next month in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Following discussions on regional trade priorities and implementation, participants reached a technical-level agreement on the roadmap.
Somalia’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, Gamal Hassan, will chair the forthcoming ministerial meeting. The gathering is expected to move the process beyond drafting the roadmap and toward implementing its priority measures.
Participants emphasized that closer trade links are central to regional integration and economic growth as Horn of Africa countries work to expand cross-border commerce and strengthen cooperation.
The secretariat of the Horn of Africa Initiative also praised Bihi Iman Egeh, Somalia’s finance minister and chair of the initiative, for his leadership and emphasis on achieving practical results.
Obsiye thanked the German government for co-facilitating the process, as well as development partners supporting the Horn of Africa Initiative.
The roadmap forms part of wider regional efforts to remove trade barriers and deepen economic cooperation across the Horn of Africa.
