The  Somali capital Mogadishu hosted today, Saturday, 27 October 2018, a Ministerial meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Contact Group on Somalia.

The meeting was opened by H.E. Hassan Ali Khayre, Prime Minister of the Federal Republic of Somalia, and gathered the representatives of sixteen OIC Member States to explore ways and means to further advance the national reconciliation, political stability, durable peace and economic development in Somalia.

Addressing the meeting, the Somali Prime Minister indicated that the holding of this meeting on the Somali soil is itself a testimony of the transformation that took place in Somalia and stressed that the Somali Government is working hard in carrying out reforms in the various institutions.

The OIC Secretary General Dr. Yousef Al Othaimeen, in his statement delivered on his behalf by Ambassador Hesham Youssef, OIC Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, emphasized that this meeting is a testimony of the OIC’s determination to support the efforts of the Somali people as well as the Government as they are resolved to build a new future for their country.

The Ambassador underlined that on the humanitarian front, the OIC Humanitarian Office in Mogadishu will continue to play the role of sensitizing the OIC Member States and the international partners not only on the Somali humanitarian plight but also to support the implementation of the Political Road Map 2020, the Transition Plan and the National Security Architecture of Somalia.

The meeting was also addressed by the Chair of the Contact Group, the representative of the State of Qatar, H.E Youssef Sultan Laram.

The meeting adopted a Final Communique, which calls on the OIC Member States to support the Federal Republic of Somalia in the various domains.