NAIROBI (SD) – In a brief ceremony held today at the French Embassy in Nairobi, the agreement concluding the debt owed by the Government of Somalia was jointly signed by the Ambassador of France to Kenya and Somalia, Mr. Arnaud Suquet, and the Minister of Finance of the Federal Government of Somalia, Mr. Bihi Iman Egeh. Also present at the meeting was the Ambassador of Somalia to Kenya, Mr. Jabril Ibrahim Abdulle.

This agreement followed many rounds of negotiations and is a continuation of the decision made earlier this year by the countries in the Paris Club organization. Today, it was officially confirmed that the Government of Somalia has been forgiven a debt of $145.6 million, which has been removed from France’s debt books.

Minister of Finance of the Federal Government of Somalia, Mr. Bihi Iman Egeh, expressed special thanks to the Government and people of France for their understanding and support to the Government of Somalia and for forgiving the debt.

The Government of Somalia is making strong efforts to complete the debt relief process, which concluded at the end of 2023. The Ministry of Finance of the Federal Government of Somalia, which is leading the country-by-country negotiations with creditor nations, is now optimistic about the completion of the process to eliminate all of Somalia’s debts.