(Ecofin Agency) - Somalia has been grappling with an unfavorable economic environment for several years. In 2022, its economic growth slowed by 0.9 basis points compared to the previous year.

According to a report released by the Somali National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday, July 4, Somalia's economic growth decelerated from 3.3% in 2021 to 2.4% in 2022. The NBS attributes this slowdown to factors such as the severe drought experienced last year and the lingering impacts of COVID-19.

However, the report highlights that during the study period, "household consumption expenditure, the largest component of the gross domestic product (GDP), increased by 5.2%, with household consumption levels surpassing 100% of GDP." In addition, "goods and services exports increased by 13.7%, and imports grew by 20.2%."

It is worth noting that this growth rate exceeds the downwardly revised estimates of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for 2022 (1.7% compared to the earlier projection of 1.9%). This is due to the challenging economic environment of the country.

For this year's projections, the IMF also revised its expectations downward, forecasting a growth rate of 2.8% compared to the previous projection of 3.1%. On the other hand, inflation is expected to decrease from 6.8% in 2022 to 4.2% in 2023 as commodity prices decline.

Charlène N’dimon (intern)