The President of the Republic of Somaliland Mr. Abdirahman Mohamed Abdilaahi (Cirro) on Sunday chaired a cabinet meeting to discuss varied issues and appraise the ministers on his recent visit to the United Arab Emirates.
From the meeting, the government approved sweeping measures on security and tax reforms following high-level meetings between President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi (Irro) and senior officials in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
President Irro, joined by Vice President Yusuf Mahmud Abdi, convened the meeting to brief the Council of Ministers on the outcomes of his four day visit to the UAE, where he held more than ten meetings with top officials. Officials say the discussions focused on expanding partnerships in key sectors, including economic development, security, education, and energy, with the UAE’s DP World set to expand its Berbera port operations.
Under the newly adopted plan, Somaliland will restructure its security apparatus, enhancing training, equipment, and coordination to address emerging threats.
“The Council approved a resolution to enhance the structure, capacity, and operational effectiveness of Somaliland’s various security forces. All 38 members present voted in favour, with no abstentions or objections,” said Hussein Adan Igeh (Deyr), the spokesperson for the president.
The government also approved a significant overhaul of its tax collection system, introducing direct digital payments to minimize revenue losses. Taxes will be applied to mobile money transfers, bank and mobile wallet transactions, telecom and internet payments, and utility services. Funds will be deposited directly into the national treasury, reducing potential leaks and delays.
The new system targets key financial platforms, including Zaad, eDahab, MyCash, DahabPlus, and PremierWallet, as well as major telecom providers such as Telesom and Somtel.
To ensure the smooth rollout of the tax system, the government assigned key oversight responsibilities to several ministries, including Finance, Telecommunications and Technology, Civil Aviation, and Energy. These ministries will monitor compliance and address any challenges during implementation.
President Irro’s visit to the UAE underlined Somaliland’s strategy of securing foreign investment despite its lack of international recognition. He said the discussion in the UAE also touched on how to cooperate in economics, job creation, investment in development projects, agriculture investment, livestock, education, mining and oil investment, Central Bank coalition, DP World investment, cooperation on security and other issues of priority for the two countries. The president told the council of ministers that he and his delegates held more than 10 meetings with the top officials of the UAE.