Somalia sets up national payments system as it rebuilds country

Somalia is struggling to rebuild after 20 years of civil war and is still battling an insurgency by al-Shabab.

Somalia has set up a national payments system as part of plans to develop the financial industry in one of the world’s most fragile states, following decades of political and economic instability. The 13 lenders in the Horn of Africa nation can now “become inter-operable, connected to the clearing and settlement system of the central bank and able to transact with each other,” Central Bank of Somalia Governor Abdirahman M. Abdullahi said in an interview. The system will “facilitate transactions between vendors and their customers more efficiently.” Somalia is struggling to rebuild after 20 years of civil war and is still battling an insurgency by al Shabaab, an al-Qaeda affiliate.