Somalia imports sugar directly from Sri Lanka amid Houthi Strait disruptions
Somalia's business community is testing new direct shipping routes to bypass Bab Al-Mandab and Hormuz straits due to security concerns. Companies have imported goods like sugar without previous stopovers in Gulf states.
Companies traditionally imported goods from Asia through Gulf countries such as the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Saudi Arabia. The recent escalation in the region involving Iran-backed Houthis has disrupted these established shipping channels. Mohamed Ali Nur, director of Mogadishu Seaport, noted that tensions in both the Bab Al-Mandab Strait and the Strait of Hormuz negatively impacted trade. Consequently, his port worked with exporters to find alternative routes. For the first time, a ship carrying sugar traveled directly from Sri Lanka to Somalia. Nur stated this strategy emerged specifically because of these tensions. This situation follows a 12-year conflict between Yemen's internationally recognized government and Saudi Arabia against the Houthis. A recent escalation ended a ceasefire that had largely stopped the civil war across Yemen since 2022. The International Organization for Migration reported over 85,000 displaced people in Yemen since the beginning of the month, with more than 2,000 reaching Djibouti.
