Somaliland Parliament Postpones Vote on Amended Mortgage Law After MPs Reject Changes

Today’s session of the Somaliland House of Representatives, which was scheduled to vote on the Mortgage Law that has been before the House for the past few weeks, was postponed after the majority of MPs rejected the amendments made to the law.

MP Ahmed Ku-Addeeye stated that the amendments introduced to the law could not be accepted, and he urged the House leadership to return the bill to its original form as submitted by the government.

On the other hand, MP Ahmed Nuur Guruuje said that the bill had been mishandled and therefore could not be approved.

Afterwards, the House legal counsel explained the procedure followed in amending the law, saying that the law specifically applies to banks. He added that consideration had been given to what could be mortgaged, noting that anything of monetary value could be included.

Legal advisor Mubarak Abdi also stated that some irrelevant provisions had been removed from the bill.

The Speaker of the House, Yasin Mahmoud Hiir Faratoon, ordered a comparison between the original bill previously debated by MPs and the amended version. It was agreed that both would be presented to the House tomorrow for approval.

The Mortgage Law, which has been under discussion for weeks, is considered an important legal framework for banking and financial institutions in Somaliland, with the potential to expand access to credit and strengthen the economy.