Firms set sights on Somalia

Nairobi NAMPA/ REUTERS

East African firms said on Wednesday Somalia was an increasingly enticing market, as it strives to cement security gains against Al-Qaeda-linked insurgents and spur an economic recovery.
The Horn of Africa country needs rebuilding from scratch. Just 10% of its roads are paved, while 95% of the country's 10 million people have no electricity.
In the capital, Mogadishu, mushrooming construction sites, solar-powered street lamps and beach front cafes point to a delicate rebound, albeit one largely confined to the city.
Somalia is a fantastic prospect, Prasad Karey, head of sales and marketing at Kenya-based Athi River Steel Plant, said.
Such a view would have been unthinkable barely two years ago when al Shabaab rebels still held bases across the capital and other major urban areas in southern and central Somalia.
They have since been pushed back into rural areas and militarily weakened by a military offensive led by African peacekeepers and government forces.
Athi River Steel Plant plans within half a year to export 300 tonnes a month - about 10% of its total monthly exports - to Somalia to capitalise on the building boom.
The snag: there are no paved roads linking Kenya to its neighbour, meaning the steel manufacturer will have to ship by land and sea, lifting its prices above foreign competitors.
The steel manufacturer's answer is to undercut rivals and sell at a loss in order to penetrate the market, banking on improved access to the Somali market in the longer term.
That could give us a big edge, Karey said at a regional investor conference for Somalia in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi.