Upgrading four regional airports: Kismayo, Baidoa, Beledweyne and Dhusamareb

Where Xidig members may contribute

These are learning and collaboration opportunities, not confirmed jobs or contracts.

• Engineering: pavement, drainage and flood-resistant design for regional airstrips.
• Airport operations: air traffic services, rescue and firefighting, security screening.
• Power and water: reliable, solar-backed power for lighting and navigation aids.
• Monitoring: independent checks on works and on environmental and social safeguards.

Possible services, research, supplier or collaboration roles

• A public record of what each airport has, and what has been built, using official data where published.
• Training for airport staff, delivered with the SCAA.
• Supplying and maintaining equipment through proper procurement.

Who may find this useful

• Civil, electrical and airport engineers.
• Aviation professionals, including air traffic controllers.
• Businesses that depend on air freight to regional towns.
• Researchers in transport and humanitarian logistics.

What is happening at each airport

Baidoa.

• Runway rebuilt by the UN: the UN Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS) rehabilitated the runway from March 2021, completing the main works in June 2022, with the South West State administration, after "the runway got severely damaged". UNSOS said in 2023 that the airport could now take C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft.
• Traffic: the same article reported "around 30 commercial flights to Baidoa each week, with 20 of these being from Mogadishu", and 1,500 to 2,000 passengers a week, up from about 1,000 before the works.
• Second phase: in May 2024 UNSOS began building a security fence. The article notes that "People here depend entirely on air transport".
• Figures differ: UNSOS described "around two kilometres" of resurfaced runway and taxiways in 2023, and 2.5 km in 2024. No cost was published.

Kismayo.

• In 2020: UN-Habitat called it "one of the four fully functioning international airports in Somalia", with "15 to 20 passenger flights" a week; cargo was "almost non existing".
• Customs offices: in August 2024 Jubaland's finance ministry tendered customs offices at the airport, funded by the UK.
• World Bank plans: see below.
• Runway: Xidig could not open official runway data. In 2020 UN-Habitat said rehabilitation was needed for the runway, "with paving in bad condition", and that "Operations are currently limited only to daylight". That suggests resurfacing and lighting may matter as much as length.

Beledweyne.

• Floods: in April 2018 floodwater stopped flights at Ugas Khalif airport. An airport official told Halbeeg News: "The airport needs to be refurbished on the eve of every rainy season."
• Donors: Xidig found no current donor plan for Beledweyne. It is not on the World Bank programme's lists described below.

Dhusamareb.

• Qatar funding: Construction Review Online reported on 19 May 2023 that Galmudug State's president had launched construction of a paved runway and terminal, with "preliminary funding of $3.5 million coming from Qatar", under an initiative the federal government announced in December 2020. It said the airport was "anticipated to open for domestic flights in 2024". Xidig could not confirm whether the work is finished.
• World Bank plans: see below.

The World Bank programme. In February 2026 the World Bank published a concept note for what it then called the Somalia Transformational Access and Infrastructure Resilience Program (P513127), a US$100M grant covering roads as well as airports. It was approved on 5 May 2026 as the Somalia Infrastructure Development for Access and Jobs Program, Phase 1, a US$160M grant. The Somali Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA) calls it the "Safe Transport Access and Resilient Systems (STARS)" project.

• Regional hubs: it plans to "Upgrade facilities at Mogadishu and regional hubs to meet international standards", naming "Baidoa, Garowe, Kismayo, and Bosasso". The work listed includes airfield lighting, screening equipment, power and water, and rescue and firefighting.
• Airstrips: it plans to "upgrade five of nine selected airstrips (Barawe, Dhoobley, Dhusamareeb, Galkacyo, Jowhar) to ICAO Aerodrome Code 3C standards".
• Status: approved on 5 May 2026. The April 2026 appraisal document lists the hubs as Mogadishu, Baidoa, Kismayo and Garowe, and the domestic airports as Galkayo, Dhusamareb, Jowhar and Dobley; Beledweyne is not named. Costs are not split by airport.

Who runs the airports. The World Bank says the SCAA "serves as both regulator and as an Airports Authority". In practice both levels of government are involved. UNSOS said in 2024 that the SCAA manages air operations at Baidoa with support from the South West State administration, which also partnered on the runway works. Jubaland's finance ministry tendered the Kismayo customs offices, and Galmudug's president launched the Dhusamareb works under an initiative announced by the federal government. Xidig found no published text setting out how these responsibilities are shared.

The proposal's cargo target. The government's renovation proposal aims to increase cargo handling to 120,000 tonnes at each airport. Read as a yearly figure, that would be around 480,000 tonnes across the four, which looks implausible (see note 1). Xidig found no official cargo statistics for any of them; in 2020 UN-Habitat described cargo at Kismayo as "almost non existing, with one flight per week".

What this means (Xidig's interpretation). Three of the four airports already have work done or planned by the UN, Qatar or the World Bank. The government's US$16.5M proposal does not say how it relates to that work. Beledweyne, with its flood problem, may be where new money would add most, but that would need flood-resistant design, not just a longer runway.

Dependencies and implementation constraints

• Coordination between the federal authorities, member-state administrations and donors.
• Security around airports.
• Flood risk, especially at Beledweyne.
• Power for lighting and navigation equipment.
• Land for any runway extension.

Risks and unknowns

• Double counting with UN, Qatari and World Bank work.
• An unclear cargo target, which makes the benefits hard to judge.
• Maintenance: Baidoa's runway failed after decades without it.

Questions members should verify before acting

1. How does the government's US$16.5M proposal relate to the World Bank's STARS programme and to Qatar's work at Dhusamareb?
2. What does the cargo target mean, and what are current volumes?
3. Is the Dhusamareb runway and terminal finished?
4. Who would manage each airport after renovation?

What is confirmed, and what isn't

Confirmed

• The proposal, its cost, duration and targets as printed.
• UNSOS's rehabilitation of Baidoa's runway (2021–2022) and the 2024 second phase.
• The World Bank concept note naming Kismayo, Baidoa and Dhusamareb.

Our interpretation

• The cargo target is probably an error.
• Beledweyne has the clearest unmet need.

Not yet verified

• Official runway lengths and current traffic at all four airports.
• The status of the Dhusamareb works.
• Whether the World Bank programme has been approved.

Relevant next steps

• Ask the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation how its renovation proposal relates to the World Bank programme.
• Follow the SCAA and the World Bank for procurement and environmental and social documents.