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MOGADISHU, 6 November 2026 — Somalia opened its first national pavilion at the China International Import Expo in Shanghai on Thursday, aiming to tap China's 1.4 billion-consumer market with tariff-free access.
Commerce and Industry Minister Jamal Mohamed Hassan opened the pavilion, where Somali companies are showcasing sesame, frankincense and myrrh, the commerce ministry said.
China has granted zero-tariff access on all goods to Somalia as one of 33 least developed African countries since December 2024, and in May extended the treatment to all 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic ties, according to China’s Customs Tariff Commission.
“This means goods exported from Somalia will always be cheaper than goods exported from Asian countries or elsewhere,” Somalia’s ambassador to China, Hodan Osman Abdi, said.
Hassan said Chinese buyers had shown strong interest in Somali agricultural products, livestock, fish and sesame.
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“We want to show people that Somalia has resources, that Somalia can export, that we are not only able to import,” he told reporters in Shanghai.
The pavilion is also promoting investment opportunities in livestock, fisheries and minerals, the ministry said.
Abdi said Somalia was focusing on industrialisation and wanted to export processed rather than raw materials, with several companies showing processed and packaged consumer products.
Securing a place at the expo was the biggest challenge, she said, as Somalia had not taken part in any of its previous eight editions. Work began last year and approval came only around April.
During the expo, which runs until Nov. 10, Somali traders will meet buyers and companies from China and other countries to find new markets, the ministry said.