Somalia Orders Officials to Boycott Nairobi Meetings as Diplomatic Row with Kenya Escalates

The federal government of Somalia has issued a directive barring State agencies, donors and United Nations bodies from holding their events in Kenya.

In what appears to be a worsening diplomatic row between the two countries, Mogadishu banned its officials from attending meetings, seminars, and conferences in Nairobi.

The move comes days after three senior Somali government officials were left stranded at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) after Kenyan officials denied them entry despite holding diplomatic visas.

Kenya's decision to suspend direct flights between Nairobi and Mogadishu has also angered Somalia.

“Due to the recent travel issues to Nairobi, Kenya, the ministry informs all its partners that representative from the ministry will not attend all upcoming meetings, workshops, seminars and trainings to be held in Nairobi."

"The ministry highly encourages those events to be held inside the country or be moved to alternative countries for ease of travel to ministry representatives,” reads part of a circular by Somali government minister Abdullahi Hashi Ali.

Somalia's Minister of Water and Energy Osman Libah, MPs Ilyas Ali Hassan and Zamzam Dahir, were part of a delegation that was scheduled to attend a European Union-sponsored conflict management program in Nairobi last week but were refused entry at JKIA.

“The Kenyan authorities at the airport informed these guys that such plan has changed, and now everyone has to obtain visas from Kenya’s Mission in Mogadishu,” a senior Somali official in the delegation, but who traveled on a foreign passport, told the media.

“The officials learnt this change upon arrival as there was no prior communication regarding this.”

The two nations are embroiled in a diplomatic row over oil and gas blocks located in an area each claims to be its territory.