Kenyan delegation in Somalia over banned Khat business

MOGADISHU, Somalia - A high-level delegation from Kenya visited Somalia over the weekend and is expected to discuss some of the emerging issues including but not limited to the banning of Khat business in the Horn of Africa nation, which has inflicted huge losses to businessmen across the East Africa nation.

Since March, Somalia, which is the biggest market for Khat locally known as Miraa, banned the importation of the mild stimulant early this year due to the raging Coronavirus pandemic and has not resumed despite the fact that everything has been normalized since August.

Last week, a section of leaders from Mt Kenya East where the crop is grown on a large scale pleaded with the government to intervene. And this occasioned the decision by the Interior Secretary Fred Matiang'i to form a committee that would negotiate with Somalia over the debacle.

Kamau Macharia, the Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary, led the delegation to Mogadishu, and the team is said to be keen to negotiate on the resumption of Miraa business. The delegation is said to be having blessings of President Uhuru Kenyatta.

"PS Amb Kamau is leading a Kenyan delegation to Mogadishu and was received by his counterpart in Somalia Amb Mohamed Ali Nur. They talked a lot about relations, business, and other issues," the Foreign Affairs department said in a tweet on Sunday.

Mr. Kamau Macharia signed the visitors' book at the newly built facilities of the Kenyan Embassy in Mogadishu, where he also engaged staff at the embassy to familiarize himself with the condition they live in. He is accompanied by Director Human Resource Mr. John Gitu, the department added.

Khat is one of the crops which gives Kenya millions of dollars in form of foreign exchange but is yet to be commercialized. Somalia is the biggest market for the crop around the world thus efforts by Nairobi to rescue the dwindling fortunes of the farmers.

The two countries also have outstanding issues such as the controversial Indian Ocean maritime boundary and the presence of Kenya Defense Forces [KDF] in Somalia. The KDF team is often accused of human rights violations especially in Jubaland, a claim they have persistently denounced.

GAROWE ONLINE