The business communities of Somali and Uganda have held first ever business summit as they explored potential trade opportunities.
In a two day event which started today in Kampala, corporates and the business group from the region showcased their products and services with intention to attract investors, partners and markets.
Somalia’s newly elected president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud is expected to attend the summit where he will lead private sector business community exchange views on how to ease the cost of doing business between the two countries.
One of the key participants at the summit will be money transfer company Dahabshiil which has a presence in Uganda offering remittances services to boost the economy.
Uganda is ranked among the top 10 recipient countries of remittances in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Dahabshiil is involved in several projects in the country, one of which has provided seed capital to innovative start-ups founded by young entrepreneurs in the region.
“This business summit between governments and business communities is vital because it not only opens up opportunities for business people to interact but also gives us a chance to understand the challenges our people in this region face,” Dahabshiil CEO, Abdirashid Duale.Duale said.
He added that while Dahabshiil already operates in Uganda there are plenty of opportunities for the company to expand its presence there and for other small and large business institutions to engage with the country.
Other companies, including one of the largest Somali telecom and internet providers, Somtel, e-Dahab mobile payments and Dahabshil Bank, will be in attendance.
The event comes two weeks after Somali agree to resume cross-border trade with Kenya.
During his visit to Kenya on July 16, President Mohamud and his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta agreed on the resumption of Kenya Airways flights to Mogadishu under an existing bilateral framework pending review.
Kenya has since began exporting miraa to Somalia following efforts by the Ministry of Agriculture.
