Now doubts have been cast whether Somalia would receive its first tranche of loans from multilateral lenders. The problems have been created within and not thrust from outside. Somalia’s auditor general made a statement that the government is parking some donor funds offshore. It did not stop there. He added that none of the ministries have completed last year’s accounts.
These two facts not only stirred the hornet’s nest but are likely to cast uncertainties in receiving the funds from World Bank, which, of late, changed the stance on the debt and crisis-ridden Somalia. The World Bank has almost made its mind forgiving Somalia’s massive debt burden of US$4.6 billion to help the government win greater access to international funding to revive its economy, which was in the grip of nearly three decades of lawlessness and violence.
The auditor’s report pointed out that US$18 million received from the European Union, Saudi Arabia and the United Nations did not reflect in the treasury’s account maintained at the central bank. It also suspects that the money was kept in offshore accounts with weaker controls. That is also the case with money received from Turkey –US$ 20 million. There was no independent audit trail for it.
The auditor also points out that the police and military in their fight against an al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab insurgency did not maintain an account for vehicles, weapons, and uniforms, which can be another scandal, that can rock the crisis-ridden country. Also, the report suggests that the government still does not have a proper assessment of the number of soldiers on the country’s rolls and their expenses toward food, uniform, vehicles, weapons and the list goes on. It may be noted that in 2017, the United States suspended food and fuel aid for most of Somalia’s armed forces. The reason was the alleged large scale graft and inertia of the establishment to create a professional force.
