The Minister of Commerce and Industry of the Federal Government of Somalia, Jamal Mohamed Hassan and African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Secretary-General held a high-level meeting in Mogadishu, as Somalia prepares to deposit its instrument of ratification of AfCFTA with the African Union. (AU) .
The meeting sought ways to advance Somalia’s transition from ratification to implementation of the AfCFTA Agreement, with a focus on enabling Somali businesses to access the continental market.
Following parliamentary ratification and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s assent on July 31, 2026, Somalia is preparing to implement the AfCFTA Agreement. The next formal step is the deposit of its Instrument of Ratification with the African Union, alongside preparations for Trade in Goods and Services.
The AfCFTA opens access to a continental market of more than 1.4 billion people. Somalia’s strategic location, extensive coastline and ports offer opportunities to expand exports, promote value addition, position the country as a regional trade gateway and create jobs at home.
Discussions with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry focused on the practical steps
required to move form ratification to implementation, including tariff schedules, rules of
origin, and the customs procedures required for Somali consignment to be recognised as
originating in Somalia when entering other African markets.
The AfCFTA Secretariat outlined the instruments available to support the process, including the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), the AfCFTA electronic tariff book and the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund.
The two sides also discussed joint work on Somalia’s national AfCFTA implementation
strategy and the identification of priority export sectors in which the country already has a
competitive base.
“Our business people are eager, and they are right to be. They want to see the fruits. We
need to move faster, and to make sure that they see results. Five East African countries
have already submitted their schedules. I would like Somalia to be the sixth,”Hassan said.
The private sector dialogue held on 18 August brought together the Somali Chamber of
Commerce and Industry, the Somali Manufacturers Association and invited enterprises for a
practical discussion on what Somali businesses need to trade effectively under the AfCFTA.
The Chamber identified five priority areas for technical assistance: guidance on the steps
following ratification; support to priority export sectors; access to opportunities in services
sectors, including telecommunications, logistics, finance and digital commerce; the
establishment of a permanent mechanism for engagement between the Chamber and the
Secretariat; and practical information on the instruments available to businesses.
The AfCFTA Secretariat undertook to work with Somalia towards the country’s first consignment under the AfCFTA and demonstrating the process from end to end.
“Somalis are natural traders. Trade is already in your DNA. What this Agreement gives
you is a market beyond your own region: West Africa, Central Africa, Southern Africa
and North Africa,” Mene told the Somalian trade chamber.
He outlined the sequence required to move from ratification to Somalia’s first shipment under the Agreement: deposit of the instrument of ratification; domestication of the AfCFTA electronic tariff book; configuration of the applicable preferential tariffs by the customs administration; and completion, within the East African Community, of the outstanding tariff concessions and commitments on trade in services.
Yassine Ibar, President of the Somali Chamber of Commerce and Industry, responded that, “Somali businesses are ready. What they need is certainty, affordable finance and functioning infrastructure.”
Joint engagement between the AfCFTA Secretary-General and Somali businesses will continue on August 18. The Ministry remains focused on translating ratification into tangible trade outcomes, including Somalia’s first AfCFTA Certificate of Origin and first exports under AfCFTA preferences.