Livestock plays a pivotal role in SL probably more so than any other region in the Horn of Africa. Therefore, we should be always pursuing ways to improve it and make it more sustainable.
Livestock does not necessarily have to be about nomads roaming the deserts.
My five key points in this proposal is to improve the markets and earnings for SL as one of its main cash flows.
A) Relocate the livestock markets in Hargeisa and Burao
- There should be outside the city premises and should have access to vast lands that different sellers, buyers and brokers could keep their animals for as long as 3 weeks.
- Should have access to dams similar to the one we built in Xumboweyne thus provide water to these animals all year round. This is one of the main reasons we need livestock markets outside the cities.
- All buyers, brokers and sellers should have permits and should pay taxes depending on the size of their holdings.
B) There should be tax-breaks for those who bring animals from neighboring Somalia especially the south-central regions; Hiiraan, Bay, Bakool.
- You can imagine if someone had 30,000 heads of goats, how much they would save thus making SL markets attractive. SL will recover those funds from elsewhere (exports).
- Partner with UAE-based livestock companies in order to increase our purchasing powers thus even attracting more and more traders from the likes of Somalia. Instead of Mogadishu, Bosaaso or Kismayo exporting 4 million, maybe we could steal 1 million from them thus increasing our quota as a main market.
- UAE could also play key role in certification of our produces, which is not only trusted by its Arab neighbors but by the West too. In short, we need to expand the Berbera deals beyond the corridor, military, free zone and travel (Emirati airliners).
- as well as export markets, using the UAE-role (Berbera) to our advantages, we should also address local markets and help ordinary supermarkets such as Kayse Bushaaro and other similar ones to invest in meat products and help develop the industry locally including various options (wet, frozen), marketing, cuts and brand development. The Malaysian teams should be utilised too where local markets develop partnerships with Malaysian supermarkets or established brands in this industry. Together they could address needs of Malaysia, Indonesia and similar markets currently supplied on and off by Australia.
c) All exporters should not only be taxed but they should contribute to the construction of animal shelters, veterinaries, dams and other infrastructures that would improve the industry for everyone. Currently they rib all the rewards and return almost zero. Not good enough.
Fellow Landers this is doable. All we need is the right team to develop the roadmap, initiate government leadership and make the call to Landers to contribute as little as $20,000 shares where contributors become shareholders of Somaliland Livestock Corporation (SLC). It should bring together shareholders (investors like yourselves), partners (government, UAE agencies, Malaysian), and members (traders, supermarkets and livestock owners who supply and buy the goods on the market).
The SLC provides the facilitation and environment where transactions and contracts can take place (saylada, quarantines, veterinaries) and both makers and takers pay their taxes in order to be participants thus making money for you as a shareholders (dividends).
The Hawdian Institute
