THT-The Minister of Finance Hon. Dr Saad Ali Shire said his country was punished for what the success achieved, while Somalia was rewarded for the failure.
In an interview with SABC News in South Africa, Dr. Sa’ad who returned recently concluded a conference on the recognition of the Republic of Somaliland, stated there are many challenges for his country faces and, at the same time, their rights have been denied. Below see Excerpt some of the questions asked and his response
When asked whether Somaliland became the victim of their success that made no sense in the lack of International Community recognition, responded Dr Saad, “I think that could be a factor, to be honest, if you are not a naughty child, people will not notice you. Sometimes we think we are punished for the success achieved, while Somalia is rewarded for the failures, which is really contradictory”.
SABC: What good would Somaliland gain by full recognition?
Dr. Sa’ad: Recognition benefits are invaluable; without recognition we aren’t able to deal with financial institutions, the World Bank and the African Development Bank, because we are not a member, and it is also difficult to attract large investments. We can’t get financial or budget support, we rely entirely on the taxes we collect.
He Continues: In travel, as I said before, we have problems, such as when our students need to study abroad, or when the business fraternities are dealing with their international counterparts, investiture etcetera. There are many restrictions we face that impede our progress due to lack of recognition, and I think these are our rights that have been denied.
By Mohamoud Walaaleye
See here full interview with SABC News in South Africa