Aboul Gheit discusses with Somali Finance Minister ways of developing Mogadishu

Ashraf Abo Arafe

Mr Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, received tiday Abdulrahman Douali Bila, Minister of Finance of the Federal Republic of Somalia, who is currently on a visit to Cairo to head a Somali delegation to participate in an expanded technical meeting organized and hosted by the League of Arab States on December 17 and 18 to support Somalia’s development plans and assisting Somalia in its efforts to exempt it from its external debt.

Aboul Gheit affirmed to the Somali minister the commitment of the League of Arab States to stand with Somalia’s leadership, government and people and continue to provide all the necessary support to contribute to the consolidation of security and stability in the country.

The Arab League expressed its keenness to identify the needs and priorities of the Somali Government with regard to its development plans for the coming years in order to mobilize Arab support in its implementation efforts and to establish an institutional mechanism for Somali people.

For his part, the Somali minister expressed the full appreciation of the Somali government for the efforts made by the Arab League in support of Somalia and the pride of President Mohamed Abdalla Faramago personally in the initiative of the Secretary General to organize the technical meeting – the first of its kind – to help Somalia implement its development plans, pointing out that this effort comes as an important addition to the other efforts that the university continues to provide in support of Somalia, including the Arabization and printing of the Somali constitution project, the provision of ambulances to the Ministry of Health of Somalia, and support the Somali education sector and help Somalia in its efforts to exempt from its foreign debt.