Despite his expertise as an airline captain, there is no noticeable improvement in the condition of Egal International Airport – Somaliland’s only functioning airport.
No official date is set for when Berbera Airport will open for business, and if the United Arab Emirates will have a role in managing it.
Previously, the Berbera Airport had been leased to the United Arab Emirates for military use for an unspecified sum and period by the former government of President Ahmed Mohamoud Silanyo.
There are a number of critical cabinet level positions currently unfilled in President Bihi’s government including the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation who has resigned to run for a parliamentary seat in the upcoming elections.
It is unclear if President Bihi will make reshuffle his cabinet in the upcoming days.
Somaliland’s Civil Aviation and Airports Administration was downgraded from a ministry by President Bihi as part of a large restructuring of government agencies when he took office in 2017.
This article first appeared in the Somaliland Chronicle and is republished with permission.