Mogadishu (UM) – Prime Minister Hassan Ali Khaire flew off to Washington, America through Addis Ababa to attend a meeting at the World Bank last night.
Insiders at the Office of the Prime Minister have informed UM that the Prime Minister finally got the visa to travel to the USA. The Prime Minister and his delegation took a private jet from Mogadishu to Addis Ababa to catch a connecting flight to Washington. UM sources at the Office of the Prime Minister have said that his trip was needed to support a roundtable meeting on Somalia’s debt relief at the IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington.
In a Tweet the Prime Minister said:
Off to the #USA to attend the #WorldBank & @IMFNews annual meetings; pertinent topics under discussion include securing debt relief & arrears clearance for Somalia. We shall work assiduously to attain & sustain our ultimate development objectives #nabadiyonolol #TubahaQaranka pic.twitter.com/d1wm0avpXt
— Hassan Ali Khaire (@HassanAKhaire) October 16, 2019
Ra'iisul Wasaare @HassanAKhaire ayaa caawa u safray magaalada #Washington ee dalka Mareykanka oo uu uga qayb gelayo shirka sannadlaha ah ee @WorldBank iyo @IMFNews
👉https://t.co/WlM6PQK8dz#NabadIyoNolol#TubahaQaranka— OPM Somalia 🇸🇴 (@SomaliPM) October 16, 2019
The Somali people getting debt relief is important but the Somali delegation at the Annual Meetings are already well briefed and led by the Finance Minister and Central Bank governor. The delegation has technocrats from both Somali institutions and the offices of the Prime Minister and President so many people are asking why the Prime Minister needed to go. Was it necessary? Could he not just use video conferencing which would be cheaper and have the same impact?
The Somali government is travelling too much at a great expense. The Somali people need to know the real cost of these government travels and the visit outcomes. How have the public benefited?
The travel to Washington is marketed as urgent for debt relief by the Prime Minister’s Tweet but are the Minister of Finance and Central Bank governor not enough for the roundtable meeting on Somalia? Somalia is the only country which will have a Prime Minister at the yearly finance meetings in Washington. Is this normal? What could the money spent on this trip done for some Somali people that need it most including the Zoobe victims and their families who this week had to deal with closed roads and no visit from the President or Prime Minister?
The Prime Minister will achieve debt relief if he can make inclusive politics a reality at home. The Federal Government and federal member states are far apart on everything and the people the Prime Minister will speak to in Washington know this. The Somali people can’t afford to lose their little resources on unneccessary trips abroad when there’s so much political disagreements at home which needs resolving by the Prime Minister.