Hussein Abdi Halane (, ) is a Somali economist and politician. He twice served as the

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

Somalia Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is the easternmost country in continental Africa. The country is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, Kenya to the southwest, th ...

Career

Early career

Halane previously worked many years with the

UNHCR The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) is a United Nations agency mandated to aid and Humanitarian protection, protect refugees, Internally displaced person, forcibly displaced communities, and Statelessness, s ...

. He was also a former East Africa Director for the

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...

NGO. On 4 July 2010, after a Cabinet reshuffle, Halane was named Somalia's Minister of Finance by Prime Minister

Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke (; , ) (born 18 June 1960), popularly known as Omar Sharmarke, is a Somali diplomat and politician. From 2009 to 2010, he was the Prime Minister of Somalia. He subsequently briefly served as Somalia Somalia, ...

. Halane was one of only two ministers retained by Sharmarke's successor

Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed (, ; born March 11, 1962), also known as Farmaajo, is a Somali politician who served as president of Somalia from 2017 to 2022. He was Prime Minister of Somalia, prime minister of Somalia for six months, from Novembe ...

. He subsequently served in an enlarged Ministry of Finance and Treasury until Mohamed's resignation as Premier on 19 June 2011, when Halane in turn stepped down from office. In December 2013, Halane alongside former Transportation Minister

Abdiwahid Elmi Gonjeh Abdiwahid Elmi Gonjeh (, ), popularly known as Abdiwahid Gonjeh, is a Somali politician. He is currently a Senator of upper house of the Federal Parliament representing Galgaduud region, Abudwak District. From September through October 2010, he ...

was reportedly among the leading candidates for Prime Minister of Somalia. The position eventually went to economist

Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed (, ; born 1959), also known as Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed Mohammad, is a Somali economist and politician. He has held leadership positions with various international organizations, including the World Bank, USAID, African Union ...

Minister of Finance

Appointment

On 17 January 2014, new Prime Minister Ahmed re-appointed Halane as Minister of Finance of Somalia.

Financial governance committee

In February 2014, Halane announced the establishment of a new financial governance committee. The panel is part of an effort by the central authorities to build a more transparent financial system in order to attract additional foreign budget assistance. It will see Somali officials confer with

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution funded by 191 member countries, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. It is regarded as the global lender of las ...

and

African Development Bank The African Development Bank Group (AfDB, also known as BAD in French) is a multilateral development finance institution, headquartered in Abidjan, Ivory Coast since September 2014. The AfDB is a financial provider to African governments and ...

representatives, with committee members tasked with providing advice on financial matters.

Tax plan

In February 2014, Finance Minister Halane announced that the federal government is slated to launch a comprehensive new taxation system. The initiative aims to diversify and increase public revenue by taxing real estate firms, money transfer companies, mobile phone operators, and other major businesses. To this end, Halane began negotiations with local business community executives over tax rates and collection. The taxation plan is intended to domestically raise funds for 50 to 60 percent of forecast government spending, with donor funds covering the remaining expenditure. Additionally, Halane in conjunction with

Mogadishu Mogadishu, locally known as Xamar or Hamar, is the capital and List of cities in Somalia by population, most populous city of Somalia. The city has served as an important port connecting traders across the Indian Ocean for millennia and has ...

's mayorship was formulating a taxation plan for land sales in the city to accommodate the capital's growing construction sector.

Aviation Training Academy

In April 2014, Finance Minister Halane participated in a foundation laying ceremony for a new national Aviation Training Academy at the

Aden Adde International Airport Aden Adde International Airport (, ) , formerly known as Mogadishu International Airport, is an international airport serving Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia. It is named after Aden Abdullah Osman Daar, the first President of Somalia. Orig ...

in Mogadishu. The event was also attended by Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed, the Minister of Air and Land Transport Said Qorshel and his deputy, the Turkish Ambassador, and the airport's General Manager. Prime Minister Ahmed indicated that the new institution would serve to enhance the capacity of aviation personnel working in Somalia's airports, and would focus training within the country. Additionally, Ahmed visited the site of a modern terminal that is concurrently being built at the Aden Adde International Airport, with funding provided by the Turkish Favori aviation firm. According to Transport Minister Qorshel, construction of the new terminal is scheduled to take six months, and is expected to improve the airport's functionality and operations. He added that his Ministry is also slated to establish other airports on the capital's outskirts. This in turn would serve to reduce congestion at the Aden Adde International Airport, which would then be exclusively used by large aircraft.

AfDB and Tunisian development cooperation

In May 2014, Halane was part of a high level Somali federal government delegation to the

headquarters in

Tunis Tunis (, ') is the capital city, capital and largest city of Tunisia. The greater metropolitan area of Tunis, often referred to as "Grand Tunis", has about 2,700,000 inhabitants. , it is the third-largest city in the Maghreb region (after Casabl ...

, which was led by Foreign Affairs Minister

Abdirahman Duale Beyle Abdirahman Duale Beyle (; ), also known as Abdirahman D. Beileh, is a Somali economist, professor, politician, philanthropist, poet, and songwriter. He served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Somalia from Janua ...

. The visiting parties are slated to meet with the AfDB president

Donald Kaberuka Donald P. Kaberuka (born 5 October 1951) is a Rwandan economist and was the president of the African Development Bank from September 2005 until September 2015. Early life and education Kaberuka was born in Byumba, Rwanda. He studied at the Uni ...

to discuss implementation of previous reconstruction development plans and financial pledges made to Somalia. They are then scheduled to confer with Tunisian government officials over potential investment programs in Somalia.

Public Procurement, Concessions and Disposal Act

In May 2014, the federal Cabinet unanimously passed a new Public Procurement, Concessions and Disposal Act, which Finance Minister Halane had tabled. The new law formalizes principles, procedures and decisions with regard to agreements entered into by public institutions, and procurement of goods, services and concessions with public funds. As such, it aims to spur economic development and establish a foundation for transparent financial governance by eliminating mismanagement of public funds, reducing monopolies and promoting competitiveness in the concession procurement process. The Act is expected to regulate the national public financial sector, ameliorate accountability, and ensure that public funds have been utilized in accordance with their intended purpose. Through sound price management of services and commodities, it also aims to strengthen financial governance and institutions by optimizing values on public expenditures. Parliament is now expected to deliberate on the bill for adoption.

Somalia-U.S. police development agreement

In August 2014, the Somali and U.S. governments reached an agreement in Washington stipulating that the United States would contribute $1.9 million toward security sector reform, development and capacity-building efforts in Somalia. The pact was signed by Finance Minister of Somalia Halane, U.S. Special Representative for Somalia

James P. McAnulty James P. McAnulty (sometimes McNulty) is an American diplomat who served as the U.S. Envoy to Somalia. After the U.S. officially recognized the government of Somalia and reopened its Mission there in 2013 after some 22 years, it continued to be r ...

, and Deputy Assistant Secretary for the

Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) is an agency that reports to the Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights within the United States Department of State. Under the umbrella of i ...

(INL) Todd Robinson. It is primarily slated to provide support to the Somali National Police Force's Criminal Investigative Division (CID), with an emphasis on implementing policies, practices and procedures that buttress citizen services and human rights. The INL will fund the initiative.

End of term

On 27 January 2015, Halane's term as Minister of Finance of Somalia ended, following the appointment of a new Cabinet by Prime Minister

. He was succeeded at the position by

Mohamud Ibrihim Adan Mohamed Adan Ibrahim (, ), also known as Mohamed Adan Ibrahim "Fargeti", is a Somali politician. Ibrahim served as the Minister of Finance as part of H.E. Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke cabinet. Personal life Adan was born in Baidoa, Somalia. He ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Halane, Hussein Abdi Living people Somalian economists Finance ministers of Somalia Year of birth missing (living people)