SOMALIA has re-opened its emb
a
ssy in London after a 32-year break, as the government in Mogadishu continues to re-establish control in the country and re-join the international community.
When the government of President Siad Barre collapsed in 1991, Somalia became a failed state as warlords ruled the roost throughout the country.
Its official diplomatic missions were closed with skeleton offices around the world to look after the interests of the hundreds of thousands of Somalis who fled the conflict in their country.
Last week, things returned to normal in London, with the re-opening of the embassy that will provide consular services to the almost 500,000 people in the UK who are eligible for Somali citizenship.
The new ambassador, Ahmed Kheyr Abdi, one-time Somali State Minister for Foreign Affairs, said that re-opening the emba
ssy was a positive step in strengthening UK-Somalia relations.
In attendance at the ceremony was Somalia-born Mo Farah, who represented Britain at the Olympic Games, winning four gold medals in the 5,000 and 10
,000 metres in London (2012) and Rio de Janeiro (2016)
Britain re-opened its own embassy in Mogadishu in 2013 after a 22-year absence.
