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Somalia's Plea on Closure of Border With Kenya
The transitional national government of Somalia has appealed to the Kenyan government to reconsider its decision to close the common border between the two countries, the East African Standard newspaper reported on Monday.
In an exclusive interview with the East African Standard on Sunday, Abdurahman Aden Ibbi, chairman of the interim government's Foreign Affairs and Diaspore Committee, said the closure was hurting his country's weak economy.
He noted that the Kenya and Somalia governments are losing more than 800,000 U.S. dollars every day following the closure.
On July 28, Kenyan President Daniel arap Moi slapped ban on cross-border trade between Kenya and Somalia, which is aimed at curbing the influx of illegal immigrants, contraband goods and proliferation of firearms.
In the interview, Ibbi called for a joint initiative to effectively police the common border, saying his transitional government was ready to help Kenyan security personnel stop the inflow of guns and drugs into the East African country.
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