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Somalia's
first officially recognised meat market opened last month
in Abu Dhabi, after Dubai's municipality decided it could
accept unlicenced meat with assurances from the UN and its
international and local partners.
Somalia,
a major livestock producing country, has been unable to officially
export meat since the collapse of government in 1991 because
of the absence of a national licensing system.
"This
is the first time Somalia has a recognised foreign market
for meat since the civil war," said Gian Paulo Aloe of UNDP
Somalia's private sector development project.
UNDP has
been working on opening meat markets for Somalia - formerly
a major exporter of livestock - since 1998 after it received
requests to invest some US $700,000 in slaughter houses. With
funding, slaughter houses were built in Galkaiyo and Mogadishu.
Sheep,
goat and camel meat used to be exported to the Arab States,
but, without government licences, exporters only had an illegal
option of sending livestock for slaughtering through Djibouti.
In May
1999 UNDP arranged two inspectors from Abu Dhabi, including
the Deputy Head of Food Inspection and veterinary Control,
to inspect the slaughter houses.
Despite
a positive report, the absence of a government licensing system
led to a refusal by the Technical Committee of the Emirates
in August 1999 to allow Somali meat to be imported.
A visit
by UNDP to meet the Secretary-General of the Municipality
in October 1999 facilitated an agreement that UNDP could provide
technical assistance to meat exporters and veterinaries to
allow them to establish a system of acceptable certification.
Gian
Paulo Aloe told IRIN that with the opening up of the meat
market, meat export has been put "on the top of the agenda"
by the Somali business community, and will be a focus for
UNDP as a means to assist and develop Somalia.
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