A high-level meeting held by a section of Somalia's government officials in Nairobi sparked debate on various social media platforms.
According to a statement shared by Somali National News Agency on Monday, November 21, the meeting was between leaders from the Federal Government of Somalia and state-level Information Ministries.
The exclusive forum was held in the country whose agenda was to deliberate on ways of revitalising government-owned media stations in Somalia.
"A meeting between Federal and State Level Information Ministries kicked off in Nairobi Kenya with the agenda of improving the state media," Somalia National News Agency reported.
The high-level governance meeting between the government and Somalia ministries drew mixed reactions from a section of social media users.
Somalia government officials were castigated for failing to indicate whether the meeting was for bench-marking to justify their travel to Kenya.
"Indeed embarrassing. Why would government officials travel to another country to have a governance discussion among themselves? Why do Somalis have so much pride in being in another country, not theirs? This is surely a curse," Ibrahim wrote on Twitter.
Another social media user added that Somali government officials were accustomed to holding meetings in Kenya, thus promoting the country's hospitality sector. He slammed the officials for misusing taxpayers' money.
"It’s clear that Somali government is customer in Kenya. Even top level security meeting between the government officials will be conducted in Kenya," Mohamed Abdiwell wrote.
However, some social media users applauded Somalia for choosing Kenya for their high-level meeting. Defending the move, they argued that the meetings were key to strengthening the bilateral relations between the two nations.
Another social media user supported the meeting, maintaining that Kenya's media landscape was advanced, allowing Somalia to pick some lessons.
"Kenyan media are good; they have better quality than ours! They operate more like international, there is nothing wrong for Somali to go Kenya and learning from them. There is a possibility that they need first-hand practical examples and placement for learning," Saida Omar remarked.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud also sparked debate following a series of his trips to the country. In July, Hassan visited Kenya on invitation from former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
On September 14, he also held a closed-door meeting with President William Ruto, which saw the two countries renew the miraa business deal.
