MP Raises Alarm Over Imbalanced Oil Deal With Turkey

MOGADISHU, Somalia – Somali Member of Parliament Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame has sounded the alarm over Somalia’s oil exploration agreement with Turkey, warning that the deal could leave the country with little control over its own resources as the drilling vessel Çağrı Bey moves into Somali waters.

Warsame said the arrangement is “deeply imbalanced” and argued that its structure appears to tilt overwhelmingly in favor of one party. According to his assessment, more than 90 percent of the benefits would go to a single side, while Somalia would receive almost no meaningful return from its natural wealth.

The Wadajir opposition party leader also criticized what he described as a troubling lack of transparency. He said the agreement does not spell out a clear system for corporate taxation or include firm commitments to social investment projects that would benefit ordinary Somalis.

He added that the deal also fails to provide convincing assurances on local employment or on the participation of Somali professionals in the sector, raising further questions about how much of the industry would remain in national hands.

With the vessel arriving as the Hassan Sheikh administration nears the end of its term, the agreement has become a flashpoint in the wider debate over whether Somalia’s long-term wealth is being negotiated away without sufficient parliamentary scrutiny or public accountability.

AXADLETM