Dubai -U.A.E (Cabays Media) – According to source closed to president Siilaanyo’s delegation in Dubai, the Somaliland president and some of his ministers in Dubai held special meeting with Dubai Port World officials to discuss concession deal on Berbera port.

Sources closed to president Siilaanyo’s delegation in Dubai are saying the meeting with the DP World took place some time last Thursday and for the first time the president sat with DP World’s top officials.

“President Siilaanyo and three ministers sat with officials from DP World and discussed on how DP World can secure minimum 20 years of Berbera concession” a close friend of Somaliland’s presidential minister was quoted as saying.

The discussion with DP World with president Siilaanyo and his accompanying ministers was high level with senior executives of DP World including the 59 years old Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem who is the chairman of DP World and international businessman whose visionary leadership spearheaded the rapid expansion of Dubai’s ports and free zones, and also an influential of the eight member of DP World board of directors.

“The Siilaanyo government is very keen to struck a deal that won’t cause uproar back in Somaliland and at the same time they want a big slice for any financial incentives” said a senior official of Kulmiye government who wants to remain anonymous.

President Siilaanyo’s delegation couldn’t be reached for comment, as they are tightly controlling the information about the deals they are making in Duabai and the Berbera port related matters.

The meeting of president Siilaanyo and some of his ministers with the DP World in Dubai could mean the beginning of the end of Berbera’s state run port and could also lead the same fate as the Djibouti port was taken over in the name of development and modernisation.

President Siilaanyo: hosted at a prestigious Dubai hotel for a securing a deal

The potential deal with DP World comes at a time the Djibouti government rescinded DP World’s 20-year Daroleh port concession and launched a case before the London Court of International Arbitration after out-of-court negotiations broke down.

But there are no official release of the details of the meeting and the exact discussions president Siilaanyo had with various levels of Emirate official including DP World and the president and now his delegation are heading back to Somaliland via Addis Ababa.

Also it is not yet clear if president Siilaanyo will seek Somaliland’s parliament approval for any agreement that will result the transfer of Somaliland’s only main port to the DP World, which is a global giant in marine terminals that holds on its grip on any potential port they secured in concessions.

Cabays Media Staff

editor@cabays.com

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