Somalia launches cross-border trade portal

Somalia has set up a trade information portal to facilitate cross-border trade and provide businesses with a transparent environment.

More than 90 laws, regulations, procedures, and other trade-related measures from over a dozen government agencies can now be accessed online. Businesses can access licences, permits, and applicable fees.

The portal, launched on Wednesday, is the government’s latest move to improve cross-border trade and facilitate Somalia’s accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) by complying with the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement.

“With the launch of the Somalia Trade Information Portal, we hope that our business community will have a useful tool to find the information necessary to facilitate their import-export activities,” said Abdulkadir Sharif Shekhuna, the state minister at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in a comment.

This is a great initiative and step forward for trade facilitation.

Source: The EastAfrican