Somalia: Traders help keep the country fed

NAIROBI: Despite the insecurity and the lack of a formal banking system, the private sector is alive and well in Somalia - and helping feed the country.

1 Apr 2010

Against all the odds, more than 50 percent of the food consumed in Somalia is imported by local traders. The challenges are significant; one of the biggest hurdles is dealing with exporters without having a proper bank account, say business people.

Liban Yusuf, who is based in the coastal city of Bosasso, the commercial capital of the self-declared autonomous region of Puntland, told IRIN that to overcome the banking challenge, "you either use money transfer companies to send the money or you open an account in a place like Dubai [United Arab Emirates] and put the money there - and neither is easy.

Read the full article on IRIN.