Bangla Press Desk: Somaliland’s president attended the World Economic Forum this week as part of efforts to secure international recognition for the self-declared state and promote investment opportunities in the Horn of Africa.
According to an aide, one of President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi’s key meetings was with Eric Trump, son of U.S. President Donald Trump and a senior executive in the Trump family’s global business empire spanning real estate, finance, and cryptocurrency ventures.
The meeting was held on Wednesday in a hotel conference room near the Davos venue, while U.S. President Donald Trump was addressing an audience of global corporate leaders at the forum.
Also present at the meeting was Israeli President Isaac Herzog, whose country formally recognized Somaliland last month, becoming the first United Nations member state to do so.
People familiar with the discussions said Abdullahi outlined investment opportunities in Somaliland, with particular emphasis on the strategic Berbera deep-sea port, located along one of the world’s busiest shipping routes.
“The meeting went well — very well,” Abdullahi told Reuters on Thursday, confirming that he met with both Eric Trump and Herzog.
A spokesperson for Eric Trump did not respond to requests for comment. In a post on X, Herzog said he was pleased to meet the Somaliland president in Switzerland, without mentioning Eric Trump.
During Donald Trump’s first term, the Trump family operated under self-imposed ethics rules that restricted new international business ventures. However, just days before Trump’s second inauguration, the Trump Organization announced revised guidelines that removed those limitations.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Somaliland has exercised de facto autonomy since 1991, following the outbreak of civil war in Somalia. Despite maintaining relative peace and political stability compared with the rest of Somalia, the region has struggled for decades to gain formal international recognition.
BP/TI
