|
September 2026 · ISSUE 01
|
|
|
Welcome to the first HoA DRIVE Somalia newsletter. From drought payouts to new trade opportunities, catch up on September’s news and field stories.
|
Cover story Drought Takaful insurance delivers US$3.43 million to 17,373 Somali pastoralists |
 |
Pictured: Waliyo Moalim Adam, a DRIVE insurance beneficiary in Hudur, Bakool. After poor rains during April–June, drought insurance payments reached pastoralists’ mobile wallets across five regions. Satellite monitoring triggered the payments under their coverage, without individual claims or livestock loss assessments. “With the payout money we received, we bought water and feed for the livestock,” said Shukri Ahmed Mohamed, a pastoralist in Abudwak. Read the payout story → |
Trading across Africa  Somalia joins AfCFTA. What comes next?On 4 September, Somalia became the 50th State Party to AfCFTA. The next step is preparing businesses to trade under the agreement: updating customs tariffs, establishing rules of origin compliance, and aligning with cross-border buyer standards. HoA DRIVE Somalia is providing technical support to help the country make its first shipment under AfCFTA. Read about the deposit and the first-shipment preparations → |
|
From the field
Pictured: DRIVE-supported milk trading equipment in Dhuusamareeb, August 2026.
Solar-Powered Cooling Boosts Resilience for Over 800 Women Milk Vendors
Selling fresh milk in Somalia’s heat is a race against time. Without reliable refrigeration and safe storage, women milk vendors risk losing stock to spoilage, taking home less money despite a full day’s work.
HoA DRIVE Somalia has provided solar-powered refrigerators and food-grade storage containers to more than 800 women milk vendors across the country to help them reduce these losses.
The rollout began with 60 traders in Galkacyo in August and expanded to other regions, including Banadir, through September. Equipment deliveries were accompanied by practical training in milk hygiene, quality control and maintenance, helping traders use and care for their new equipment. Distribution is on track to reach 1,000 women before mid-October.
Solar cooling reduces dependence on costly or unreliable electricity, while food-grade containers help keep milk safe during storage and transport. For women running small businesses, keeping milk fresh for longer means more time to sell it and less risk of losing the money spent buying and transporting it. This support is part of DRIVE’s wider work to improve the quality of livestock products and help the people who produce, handle and sell them earn more from their work.
In the next edition: We’ll hear directly from women using the equipment about what it means for their daily work, businesses and household earnings.
|
New York · 23 September
DRIVE brings Horn of Africa experience to UNGA food security discussions
Across two panels, DRIVE representatives connected drought insurance with investment in livestock businesses and more reliable routes to market.
Read the food security discussion →
|
|
Trade Facilitation
Participants at the National Trade Facilitation Committee workshop in Mogadishu, August 2–3, 2026
NTFC Strategic Induction and Roadmap Workshop: Helping Somali Producers Reach Regional Markets
Somali institutions, businesses and regional partners met in Mogadishu on August 2–3 for the NTFC Strategic Induction and Roadmap Workshop, supported by HoA DRIVE Somalia through the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. They examined how to reduce paperwork, clearance delays and trading costs. Proposals included a single online entry point for trade documents, clearer requirements and deadlines for institutions to resolve reported barriers, helping Somali producers reach regional buyers more reliably.
Read the full story →
|
Somalia and Kenya work toward simpler cross-border trade
Somalia and Kenya agreed to work toward a bilateral trade framework to ease border obstacles. A DRIVE-supported study identifies practical ways to simplify procedures and lower costs for small traders.
Read the story
|
|
Somali Cabinet approves Rules of Origin Bill
Developed with DRIVE support, the bill would help Somali exporters prove where their goods were made and qualify for regional trade preferences.
Read the story
|
Quick Reform Updates
- SOBS law review · September 24: A DRIVE-supported validation reviewed amendments to strengthen the legal basis for standards, testing and certification.
- NTFC first technical meeting · September 19 – 20: With DRIVE support, the committee reviewed trade commitments, customs digitization and institutional follow-up.
- Competition and consumer protection · September 12 – 14: MoCI with DRIVE support brought together gov't, businesses, other stakeholders in Mogadishu to review and validate the draft National Competition and Consumer Protection Policy and Act.
- Intellectual property · August 29 – 31: A workshop validated a draft intellectual property framework developed with DRIVE support. It covers creators’ rights, business brands and protections for products linked to their place of origin.
|
|
Watch & listen
Somalia’s draft National Intellectual Property Policy and Law could help protect the value of local brands, products and creative work. In this Africa IP Day 2026 video, government and business voices explore trademarks, copyright, product origin and the opportunities for Somali enterprises in African markets.
Hear from Abdirizak H. Yussuf, Director of Industrial Development; Prof. Abdi Akhiro, the Secretary General of the Somali Industrial Association; and Hersiyo Abdulle, CEO of SomFresh and Somali Women in Business.
▶ Watch the Africa IP Day video →
|
What would make trading easier for Somali businesses? Abdihalim Ibrahim, Director of Foreign Trade and Market Access at Somalia’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, explains how the National Trade Policy 2027–2031 proposes to cut paperwork, make trade requirements consistent across the country and help producers meet export standards.
He spoke during the policy’s validation workshop in Mogadishu on September 27–28, where government institutions, Federal Member States and businesses reviewed the proposals with support from the World Bank-financed HoA DRIVE Somalia project.
▶ Watch the trade policy video →
|
|
Perspectives
 | By Suleiman Abdullahi
HoA DRIVE Focal Point at the Somali Bureau of Standards |
With support from HoA DRIVE Somalia, SOBS is building a unified digital platform for businesses to access standards, apply for certification and verify certificates.
Read the full article →
|
 | By Sadaq Mohamed
National Trade Facilitation Coordinator, Office of the Prime Minister |
Somalia must turn regional market access into lower trade costs, stronger businesses and more competitive exports.
Read the full article →
|
 | By Abdulkadir Hassan
HoA DRIVE Focal Point at the Ministry of Livestock, Forestry and Range |
Somalia’s new Livestock Market Information System (LMIS) gives pastoralists and producers access to current prices before they decide when and where to sell.
Read the full article →
|
|
Useful resources
|
Procurement notice Building Somalia’s National Single Window SystemThe Ministry of Finance is seeking proposals for the platform, access and electronic payment layers, priority integrations and initial operational support under DRIVE. View the extension notice and submission requirements → |
Know someone who should receive this?Share this issue with a colleague interested in climate resilience, livestock value chains and regional trade. Future editions will bring new field stories, reform updates and useful opportunities. Subscribe to the DRIVE newsletter → |
About HoA DRIVE Somalia
The World Bank-financed HoA DRIVE project strengthens pastoralists’ resilience to drought, supports their inclusion in livestock value chains and facilitates trade. In Somalia, it combines insurance, savings and digital financial services with financing for livestock businesses, stronger standards and certification, improved veterinary services and trade reforms to expand market access. Website · LinkedIn |
HoA DRIVE Somalia · Monthly newsletter
Newsletter archive and subscription · Privacy |
