By Bakar Osman - Reporter
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DJIBOUTI, 4 November 2026 Somalia's Speaker of the House of the People Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur on Tuesday visited Doraleh Container Terminal and the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone (DIFTZ).
He was accompanied by Djibouti's Speaker of the National Assembly, Dileita Mohamed Dileita, and received by Aboubaker Omar Hadi, President of the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority (DPFZA).
The visit began at Doraleh Container Terminal, where officials from the Société de Gestion du Terminal (SGTD) briefed the delegation on the facility's infrastructure, equipment, operational capacity and role in regional maritime connectivity and trade.
The officials also highlighted investments made in recent years, which they said had strengthened Djibouti's position as a major logistics and port hub in the Horn of Africa.
The delegation subsequently visited the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone, where discussions focused on strengthening cooperation between the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority and Somali ports.
According to the DPFZA, cooperation has already produced several practical initiatives across Somalia's port sector.
In Mogadishu, Djibouti donated two tugboats, the "Bab el Mandeb" and the "Moussa Bouh", alongside container-handling equipment and spare parts. A Djiboutian technical team was also deployed to Somalia for two years, while Somali port personnel received professional training.
In northeastern Somalia, at the Port of Bosaso, the authority conducted bathymetric surveys of the access channel, improved navigational aids and provided a tugboat named "Hassan Gouled Aptidon" and a pushboat known as "Rasyan".
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The support also included a study on port tariffs and regulations, as well as technical assistance in airport design, particularly regarding runway orientation.
Other Somali ports have benefited from technical and advisory support.
At Gara'ad Port, Djibouti provided consultancy services on port operations and management. At Berbera Port, 11 senior officials underwent six months of training in engineering and port operations in Djibouti.
For Hobyo Port, Djibouti conducted site assessments and meteorological and oceanographic studies, while preparing a preliminary port design.
A preliminary costed road proposal was also developed for a corridor linking Hobyo, Cadaado and Caabudwaaq. The proposed route aims to connect Somali-inhabited areas of Ethiopia to the Indian Ocean.
The DPFZA said 11 Somali companies are currently operating within Djibouti's free trade zones, reflecting growing economic and commercial relations between the two countries.
The visit forms part of Speaker Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur's official visit to Djibouti, which began on Monday.
Strategically located at the entrance to the Red Sea, along one of the world's busiest maritime routes, Djibouti has made its ports and free trade zones central pillars of its economy.