MOGADISHU (SD)-The Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Mr. Hamza Abdi Barre, and the Minister of Finance met this evening with members of the Somali business community.

The focus of the meeting between Hamza Barre and the business community was the sales tax that the government previously proposed to collect but has now been modernized and restructured.

These discussions were centered on how to align the updated tax system with the various needs and circumstances of the business community, taking into account the concerns they had raised. The government pledged to address these issues.

The Minister of Finance of Somalia stated that two points were agreed upon: resolving the concerns of the business community and commencing the sales tax collection, which the federal government started today.

This meeting with Hamza Barre comes at a time when business owners in the Banadir region have announced in a statement that they will close their businesses starting tomorrow in protest against the excessive taxes imposed on them.