Somalia promises to follow through on its threat to penalise corporations that misidentify or conduct business as if Somaliland were a separate entity.

By September 1, all companies operating in Somalia, according to Mogadishu, should have updated their network platforms to show that Somaliland is a part of Somalia.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) of Somalia ordered businesses to remove the name of Somaliland, the self-declared separate territory, from their network information sites, using the country’s interim constitution as justification.

The announcement, which also served as a warning to other remittance dealers and businesses to cease using the name Somaliland and instead use Somalia, gave particular names to money transfer companies such as Paysii, Dahabshil, and Jubba Express.

Ethiopian Airlines, which operates flights to Mogadishu and Hargeisa, was also held accountable for mislabeling the destination of Somaliland as a separate entity.

“Use Somalia only in your systems as from 1st of September (this year),” Commerce and Industry Minister Jibril Abdirashid Haji Abdi had said on August 24.

Airlines using Somali airports were also instructed by the Somali Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA) to cease referring to cities like Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, as being distinct from Somalia.

However, the issue reflects what has happened since Ethiopia and Somaliland signed an agreement on January 2 of this year, whereby Addis Ababa might acquire a coastal strip for the construction of a naval station in exchange for Somaliland’s recognition—which it has been fighting for since 1991 without success.

Due to Mogadishu’s irritation with the MoU, it has protested at every international conference, charging Ethiopia with a plot to split up Somalia. On the other hand, Somaliland maintains that Mogadishu has declined to acknowledge the true issue.

First Secretary Ismail Shirwac of the Somaliland Liaison Mission in Nairobi stated that Somalia ought to attend to the issues of Somaliland rather than start a dispute with Ethiopia.

“The core of the matter lies in Somaliland exercising its sovereign right to enter into international agreements, as we did with the UAE’s DP World, while Somalia continues to assert that Somaliland is part of Somalia and, therefore, cannot engage in such agreements independently.”

In December 2020, Somalia severed diplomatic ties with Kenya, citing Nairobi’s meddling in internal matters in Mogadishu following the leader of Somaliland’s visit to Nairobi. It re-established contact after six months. In 2019, it severed its connections with Guinea for extending a red carpet greeting to the leader of Somaliland, Muse Bihi.

Formerly known as the British Somaliland Protectorate, Somaliland gained independence from the United Kingdom on June 26, 1960, and on July 1st, 1960, it willingly united with Italian Somaliland to establish the Somali Republic.

Following the overthrow of Siad Barre’s administration on May 18, 1991, the area unilaterally declared its independence. Since then, it has had de facto self-rule, functioning democracy, its central bank, and its currency.

Corporations have been evaluating business wins and losses thus far. For example, Ethiopian Airlines, which operated two daily flights to Mogadishu and six combat destinations, was forced to face the harsh reality of losing business in Somalia.