Somalia appeals for international aid to cyclone victims

Somali Minister of Finance and Planning Mohamud Suleiman appealed Wednesday to international community and relief organizations to help his government provide relief aid to the cyclone-ravaged areas in northeastern parts of the impoverished Horn of Africa nation. "We need urgent relief aid, including tents, foodstuff, medicine, and means of transportations, to alleviate the sufferings of people displaced by the disaster," Minister Suleiman said during a seminar held on the sidelines of the Kuwait-hosted Arab-African summit. He went on to say that "hundreds of people and thousands of livestock were killed and hundreds of homes as well as all main roads were destroyed by the cyclone". In this regard, Suleiman thanked His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah's for ordering USD 3 million-worth urgent relief aid to Somalia. Meanwhile, the Minister highlighted the diverse investment opportunities in his country particularly in the agriculture and fishery sectors. He added that the government has taken several measures and introduced legal reforms to attract investors after restoring stability to the majority of its territories in the wake of 23 years of civil conflict. Somalia has restored stability and is now ready to receive investors and developments partners, he said