Reader's notes: inconsistencies in the booklet, page by page
Tusmada
- Summary
- Where Xidig members may contribute
- Possible services, research, supplier or collaboration roles
- Who may find this useful
- What the booklet contains
- The notes, page by page
- Dependencies and implementation constraints
- Risks and unknowns
- Questions members should verify before acting
- What is confirmed, and what isn't
- Relevant next steps
- More about the source
- Related reports
- About this report
- Sources
Before you quote a figure from Somalia's 37 investment proposals: a neutral, page-by-page list of unclear figures, copy errors and outdated numbers, and how Xidig handles each.
Not investment advice. Independent notes on a government publication. The Government of Somalia has not endorsed them. These notes are offered to help readers, not as criticism of the officials who prepared the booklet.
Summary
If you plan to quote a figure from the government's 37 investment proposals, or build a business plan on one of them, check it here first. The Bankable Projects 2026–2030 booklet is the first edition of a national catalogue of those proposals. Like many first editions, it contains some unclear figures and copy errors. None of them changes what the booklet is for, but some change how its numbers should be read.
The main issues:
- Four costs need confirmation. Three are printed with the letter B where every other cost uses M, and one has two decimal points.
- Copied text and typing errors. Five sheets carry a title, subsector, description, incentive or contact that seems to belong elsewhere, and a sixth has minor typing errors.
- Tick boxes that don't match. Some investment-type ticks contradict the sheet's own description.
- Figures that have changed. Several economic figures were accurate for their source but have since been revised, and two pages give different population figures.
- Numbers without sources. Jobs, output and return figures are mostly unsourced. Xidig never repeats the return figures.
Members with sector expertise can help by checking a sheet's claims against official data, reporting errors, and asking SOMINVEST or a ministry for confirmed figures. Each item below gives the page, what is printed, why it matters, and how Xidig handles it. Page numbers are PDF pages; the printed page number is one lower.
Where Xidig members may contribute
- Check a figure: members with expertise in a sector can check a sheet's claims against official data.
- Report an error: use the correction link on this page if you find another issue, or if an item here has been fixed.
- Ask the source: members in contact with SOMINVEST or a ministry can ask for confirmed figures, especially the four unclear costs.
Possible services, research, supplier or collaboration roles
- Editorial support: fact-checking and data review for future editions, if invited.
- Data notes: short sourced notes on the most-cited figures.
Who may find this useful
- Anyone citing the booklet: journalists, researchers, students and investors.
- Officials preparing a future edition.
- Members writing proposals or business plans based on a sheet.
What the booklet contains
The booklet presents 37 proposals in ten sectors, each on a two-page fact sheet, plus introductory pages with an economic snapshot (p.7), national plans (p.8), business rules and member states (p.9) and contacts (p.10). The proposals are "drawn from the National Transformation Plan (2025–2029)".
The notes, page by page
Introductory pages
| Page | What is printed | What it means | How Xidig handles it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | "GDP (2024) US $11.97B"; "GDP Growth (2024) 4.1%" | Correct for the statistics bureau's June 2025 release. SNBS revised 2024 GDP to about US$12.35 billion and growth to 4.0% in June 2026 | We use the latest figures, dated, and note the revision |
| 7 | "Population (2024/25) ≈16.3M", marked as from the 2014 population estimation survey (PESS) | A 2014 survey figure presented for 2024/25. World Bank figures, based on UN estimates, give about 19.0 million for 2024 | We use World Bank/UN estimates, with their date |
| 7 and 79 | 16.3 million (p.7) against "16.9 million" (p.79) | Two different population baselines in one booklet | We quote each where it is used and say they differ |
| 7 | "GDP (2022) +2.7% (official SNBS)" | The label says GDP, but the figure is a growth rate | Read as 2022 growth |
| 7 | "Livestock exports = US $917M (2024)" | Matches the statistics bureau's value at constant 2022 prices; current-price figures are higher | See Livestock exports: why the figures don't match |
| 7 | "Remittances $2.4 billion. (SNBS)" | Matches the IMF's 2024 measure of private transfers including remittances | We cite the IMF measure |
| 8 | Somalia Vision 2060 "launched in 2023" | It was announced in January 2023 and formally launched on 23 June 2025 | We give both dates |
| 8 | The NTP described as "focused on institutional reform, service delivery, economic recovery, and peacebuilding" | Differs from the plan's four official pillars | See The National Transformation Plan 2025–2029 in brief |
| 9 | "VAT: 5%" | The 5% tax introduced in August 2024 is officially a sales tax | See Investing in Somalia |
| 9 | The list of Federal Member States and the Banadir Regional Administration, with major towns | The status of some entries is politically contested | We report the list as printed and take no position |
| 9 | Tax rates, land, visas and work permits in one table | A summary; rules and rates can change | Check with the relevant ministry |
Costs that need confirmation
| Page | What is printed | What it means | How Xidig handles it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 51 | Roads: "$1,071 B" | Every other sheet uses "M". Read literally this would be more than a thousand billion dollars. Most likely a formatting error for about US$1.07 billion | Reproduced as printed with a note; left out of all totals, titles and charts |
| 53 | Trade corridors: "$1,209 B" | As above | As above |
| 55 | Deep seaports: "$ 1,008.3 B" | As above | As above |
| 69 | Mogadishu Stadium: "$9.787.217 M" | Two decimal points, so it cannot be read as written. May mean US$9,787,217 | As above |
The Ministry of Public Works' own 2025 presentation gives the road budgets in "USD mil", which supports reading the "B" figures as millions, although its amounts differ (about US$1,181M and US$1,294M). See Somalia's roads and trade corridors.
Copied, misplaced or mistyped text
| Page | What is printed | What it means | How Xidig handles it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | The live animals and meat processing sheet is titled "Fodder Production and Processing" | The title of the previous sheet was reused | We use the subsector and content to identify it |
| 29 | The national oil company sheet has the subsector "Renewable Energy (Biogas)" | Does not match an oil company | Treated as a copy error |
| 75 | A hospital sheet offers "10 Years tax exemption for investors operating in these three commercial farming zones" | Appears to be copied from another project or document; no sheet in this booklet mentions farming zones | Not treated as a health incentive |
| 78 | The referral-hospital description repeats the pharmaceutical description word for word | The hospital content is on p.79 only | We use p.79 for the hospital scope |
| 92 | The edible oil sheet's ministry contact is an address at moe.gov.so, the Ministry of Education's domain | Probably copied from an education sheet | We don't reproduce it; the sheet names no ministry as promoter, so ask SOMINVEST for the correct contact |
| 21 | The poultry sheet gives the sponsor's company initials two different ways and places the farm in "Mogadishu Tow" | Minor typing errors | Xidig does not profile the named sponsor |
Tick boxes that don't match the description
| Page | What is printed | What it means | How Xidig handles it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | Port "modernisation" is ticked greenfield | Modernising existing ports would normally be brownfield | Reported both ways |
| 77 | Pharmaceutical production is ticked brownfield, while the same page says "Somalia lacks local manufacturing capacity" | Contradictory | Reported both ways |
| 79 | Eight new referral hospitals are ticked brownfield | New hospitals would normally be greenfield | Reported both ways |
| 34 and 95 | The power-plant sheet ticks "Feasibility Started" and the PET preform sheet ticks "Feasibility Completed" | The only two sheets ticked beyond pre-feasibility. No feasibility study has been published | Stage reported as ticked; ask for the studies |
Claims that are unclear or contradicted
| Page | What is printed | What it means | How Xidig handles it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | The title says "15 Off-Grid 5 MW" plants; the description says "15 MW Solar PV Power Plants" | Total capacity is unclear | See Solar power and battery storage |
| 37 | "approximately 168 million kWh" and "3,150,000 tons of CO2", with no time period | Cannot be checked without a period | Not repeated |
| 37 | Titled "Solar Lant" | Typing error for "Solar Plant" | We note the printed title where we quote it |
| 51 | "Rehabilitation of 3,825 km of existing key tarmac roads" | Only 2,860 km of roads were recorded as paved in 2016 | A question for the ministry |
| 79 | "The country's only existing referral hospital is located in Mogadishu" | Other sources name further referral hospitals: UNOPS lists a Galmudug Regional Referral Hospital, and WHO refers to "federal and state referral hospitals" | See Hospitals, medicines and cancer care in Somalia |
| 77 | "Somalia currently relies on imports for 70% of its essential medicines" | No source given; the closest official estimates measure the private sector's role | See Making medicines locally |
| 80 | "over US$100 million annually spent by Somali patients overseas" | No source given. The closest match Xidig found is a similar figure for all medical treatment in India, attributed to the then health minister in a Somali news report | See Travelling abroad for cancer care |
| 92 | "$186 million in palm oil" imports in 2022 | Partner-country data suggest about US$271 million | See Edible oil refining and PET preforms in Somalia |
Figures Xidig does not repeat
- Return on investment. Three sheets (pp.80, 92 and 94) state a return. No basis is given, so Xidig never repeats these figures.
- Jobs. Eleven sheets give job numbers without a source or method. Xidig quotes them only as the booklet's claims and does not add them up. See Reading the jobs numbers in the booklet.
Other points
- Forum numbers. At a government investment forum in Mogadishu in April 2026, a MoPIED official spoke of "around 100 projects"; the booklet has 37 sheets. An earlier copy of the booklet seen by Xidig listed 39 projects. The differences should be confirmed with SOMINVEST. See 37 or 100?.
- Small typing errors elsewhere, such as "drown from" for "drawn from" in a foreword (p.4), do not affect meaning and are not listed individually.
Dependencies and implementation constraints
- Only the publishers can confirm what was intended.
- A later edition may fix some of these points; this page describes the version posted on SOMINVEST's website.
Risks and unknowns
- Misuse of unclear figures: the four unclear costs, if read literally, would distort any total.
- Outdated figures: economic numbers change with each official release.
Questions members should verify before acting
- What are the confirmed figures for the roads, trade corridors, deep seaports and stadium?
- Is there an updated edition, and what changed?
- Have the feasibility studies for the power plants and PET preforms been published?
- What is the source for each job, output and demand figure you plan to use?
What is confirmed, and what isn't
Confirmed
- Every item above, as printed in the booklet.
- The later revisions and the external figures cited, as described in the linked reports.
Our interpretation
- The "B" costs are most likely formatting errors for millions.
- The copied text comes from reusing a template.
Not yet verified
- The intended figures, which only the publishers can confirm.
Relevant next steps
- Before quoting a booklet figure, check this page and the linked sector report.
- Send confirmed corrections to Xidig using the correction link.
More about the source
- Primary source: MoPIED / SOMINVEST, Bankable Projects 2026–2030, posted 19 Nov 2025. The copy used here is the version on SOMINVEST's website; the file's metadata dates it to April 2026.
- Method: every item was checked against the PDF, page by page.
Related reports
- Somalia's Bankable Projects 2026–2030, explained
- A reader's glossary: bankable, pre-feasibility, PPP, brownfield and other terms
- Somalia's economy at a glance: the latest figures, with sources
- Livestock exports: why the figures don't match
- Somalia's roads and trade corridors
- Solar power and battery storage in Somalia
- Hospitals, medicines and cancer care in Somalia
- Making medicines locally: quality and regulation
- Travelling abroad for cancer care: what is known
- Edible oil refining and PET preforms in Somalia
- The National Transformation Plan 2025–2029 in brief
- Investing in Somalia: registration, tax, land, visas and permits
- 37 or 100? The booklet and the April 2026 investment forum
- Reading the jobs numbers in the booklet
About this report
By Xidig members and collaborators.
Project codes. Codes such as EN-04 or AG-05 are Xidig's own shorthand for the booklet's fact sheets, by sector; the booklet itself does not number its projects.
How we researched it. We read the full 97-page booklet and checked every figure, page reference and quotation used here against it. We then compared the booklet's claims with the official, international, academic and news sources listed below, and we say where they differ. We did not interview anyone for this report.
Corrections. If you spot an error, please tell us using the correction link on this page.
Sources
Primary
- MoPIED / SOMINVEST, Bankable Projects 2026–2030: https://sominvest.gov.so/bankable-projects-in-somalia-2026-2030/
Supporting
- UNECA, "At launch of Somalia Centennial Vision 2060, UN commends Somali progress and plans" (Jun 2025): https://www.uneca.org/stories/at-launch-of-somalia-centennial-vision-2060,-un-commends-somali-progress-and-plans
- Somali National Bureau of Statistics, Somalia GDP 2025 (30 Jun 2026): https://nbs.gov.so/somalia-gross-domestic-product-gdp-2025/
- SNBS, Somalia GDP 2024 release (June 2025): https://nbs.gov.so/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Somalia-GDP-2024-release-text-v3-2025.pdf
- SONNA, "Ministry of Finance introduces 5% sales tax on goods and services" (16 Aug 2024): https://sonna.so/en/ministry-of-finance-introduces-5-sales-tax-on-goods-and-services
- FTL Somalia, "Somalis spend over $100 million annually seeking medical treatment in India" (undated): https://www.ftlsomalia.com/somalis-spend-over-100-million-annually-seeking-medical-treatment-in-india/
- UNOPS, "UNOPS and Somalia's Ministry of Health to rehabilitate six regional hospitals" (30 Jul 2025): https://www.unops.org/news-and-stories/news/unops-and-somalias-ministry-of-health-to-rehabilitate-six-regional-hospitals
- WHO EMRO, "Somalia launches US$11.4 million project to strengthen emergency care services at regional hospitals" (29 Sep 2023): https://www.emro.who.int/somalia/news/somalia-launches-us-114-million-project-to-strengthen-emergency-care-services-at-regional-hospitals.html
- World Bank, World Development Indicators, population (SP.POP.TOTL): https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.POP.TOTL?locations=SO
- SOMINVEST, transport infrastructure sector page (2016 road assessment): https://sominvest.gov.so/key-sectors/transport-infrastructure
- Dawan Africa, "Somalia unveils 100 investment projects in energy, infrastructure, blue economy" (Apr 2026): https://www.dawan.africa/news/somalia-unveils-100-investment-projects-in-energy-infrastructure-blue-economy
Source notes
- Sources for the external comparisons are listed in the linked sector reports.