– ‘Humanitarian needs remain vast’ –
Sadia Sheikh Ahmed, who also grew up in Sweden after fleeing Somalia, said she had helped her relatives abroad snap up property.
“Initially we wanted to buy two houses, but now we and our relatives have bought eight homes, scheduled to be completed soon,” she said.
A two-storey house can cost some $130,000, while a more simple bungalow comes in at around $70,000.
Those are hefty sums in one of the poorest countries in the world, with a gross domestic product per capita of just $284, according to the World Bank, against a sub-Saharan Africa average of $1,300.
Development indicators are “among the lowest in the world”, the World Bank says, noting the Horn of Africa nation is “heavily dependent” on aid and remittances.
Over 308,000 children are acutely malnourished, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
“After more than two decades of violence and political instability, Somalia is on a positive trajectory,” OCHA said, while warning the “promising trend” takes place amid a “precarious” humanitarian and security situation.
“Humanitarian needs remain vast and Somalia’s humanitarian crisis remains among the largest and most complex in the world,” OCHA added.
But the estate is symbolic of the possible changes in Mogadishu.
“The security here is very good and there have been no problems,” said Fuad Ahmed Warsame, marketing director of Daru Salaam Real Estate, which is building the new neighbourhood – meaning “house of peace.”
The company is headquartered in central Mogadishu’s famous Bakara Market, the city’s commercial heart, once infamous as the 1993 battle when fighters shot down two American Black Hawk helicopters. The bullet scars there have long been covered up with business booming.
“Our plan is to build a new neighbourhood with a good environment, new designs,” added Warsame.
