Hargeisa (Horn)- When the current administration of Kulmiye party led by president Silanyo took over office in 2010 the republic of Somaliland had six officially operational airports both local and international, namely; Egal in Hargeisa,Berbera international and the air strips in Borame,Burao,Lasanod and erigavo respectively.
Seven years later to the reign of president Silanyo and his Kulmiye party only Egal international airport in Hargeisa is fully operational and under full government control ,literally translated ,this means that despite the millions of dollars infused by international partners like Kuwait and the myriad of man hours by locals ,rather than increment the Somaliland aviation transport has converted to one exit and entry point ,namely, Egal international airport.
For a couple of years after the assertion of the Silanyo administration and as said millions of dollars infusion by development partners all the airstrips were made redundant ,thence only Berbera and Egal international airport were operational.
To date while Egal is the only fully operational airport under government control appears according to Geeska Afrika sources is as a result of the Somaliland government having transferred the Berbera international airport to the government of the United Emirates as a military facility.
In reminisce Berbera international airport which was constructed by the Russians in the late 70’s and early 80’s has the one of the longest runways in Afrika, not to mention that subsequent post Somaliland withdraw from union with Somalia with infusion of millions of dollars had basic intent of utilizing the costal city’s based airport as an exit point for persons deemed non grater by the administration in Hargeisa.
Without any doubt coupled with planned ICAO transfer of Somaliland airspace control and management to the Somalia federal authorities in Mogadishu coupled with the reduction of operational airport and airstrips from the pre-2010 six to only one ,the administration of president Silanyo and his Kulmiye party has failed Somalilanders in the aviation and air transport miserably.
Several attempts to elicit comment from the Somaliland minister of aviation and air transport were unsuccessful.