SOMALIA SEEKS MALAYSIA'S HELP WITH ITS ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

ISTANBUL, Nov 11 (Bernama) -- Somalia, which is in transition to a new
government, has sought the help of Malaysia to develop the country especially
its economy, Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said Tuesday.

During his bilateral meeting Monday with the Deputy Prime Minister of
Somalia, Sharif Hassan Sheikh Aden, the latter had said that the civil war in
the country had decimated many of its people and ravaged its economy.

"Presently they are in transition to a new government and the current
situation is not stable but they do have the intention of solving the conflict
which involves several tribes in Somalia," he told reporters before returning to
Malaysia.

"If this (situation) can be overcome, he (Sharif Hassan) wants Malaysia to
help develop Somalia. This requires us to study the matter carefully," he said.

Muhyiddin was here on a two-day visit, leading the Malaysian delegation to
the Economic Summit held here Monday in conjunction with the 25th summit of the
Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation (COMCEC) of the
Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC).

Besides Somalia, the minister also had bilateral meetings with other leaders
of OIC member nations, namely the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Khalifah Al-Thani,
Prime Minister of Mauritania, Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf, and the President of
Sierra Leone Ernest Bai Koroma.

During his 30-minute meeting with Somalia, Muhyiddin also suggested that
officials from the country be sent to Malaysia to undergo human resources
training both for administraton and economic development purposes.

"We have the Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP) scheme under
the Foreign Ministry. Therefore, we can train their officers under the programme
and send our officers to their country and so on," he said.

Somalia is rich with natural resources and their primary activity is
agriculture, he said.

"We will see how Malaysia can help with Somalia's economy especially in the
agriculture sector and fisheries," the deputy prime minister said.

Malaysia will be able to also help in the areas of education.

Muhyiddin also disclosed that several leaders of OIC member nations had
informed him of their intention to visit Malaysia next year including the Emir
of Qatar and Syrian President Bashar Assad.

-- BERNAMA