Somaliland Finance Minister submits 2020 budget to Parliament

Hargeisa (Somaliland.com) – Somaliland minister of finance Sa’ad Ali Shire today submitted the 2020 government budget to the House of Representatives for approval.

Wide-ranging speech at the house floor, the finance minister reported on the economic condition of the country.

He talked about Somaliland shilling losing 35% of its value earlier this year, but regaining some of it after central bank intervention.
The trade deficit is huge also, he said, which contributes to the depreciation of the national currency.

The national government budget for the year 2020 is 2.750 Trillion Somaliland shillings. This is equivalent to a little over 330 Million U.S dollars.

Sa’ad Ali Shire said the budget is comprehensive and responds to the needs of the country in a realistic and practical way. He expressed hope the House will approve it without any changes.

The minister said the government gave priorities to sectors in alignment with the national development plan, including security, elections, health, education, justice, and devolution.

In this regard, more than a third of the national budget is allocated to security. education will take up nine percent of the national expenditure and infrastructure development a four percent.

The cabinet of President Muse Bihi approved the budget in their meeting on Sunday. in a statement, the presidency said, the budget will focus on security, the quest for recognition and infrastructure building.