MOGADISHU — Official audit records and supporting documents reviewed by Daily Somalia raise serious questions over procurement practices, private contracting and administrative controls within Somalia’s Civil Aviation Authority (SCAA), as the government continues to promote plans for rebuilding the country’s aviation sector.
At the centre of the documents is a finding by the Office of the Auditor General that the Civil Aviation Authority entered into procurement agreements worth a combined $2,073,376.56 without registering them with the Auditor General’s office.
The audit states that failure to register government contracts undermines transparency, accountability and the Auditor General’s ability to scrutinize public expenditure.
The 2025 federal audit explains that the Auditor General is legally mandated to verify government contracts, monitor financial transactions and assess whether public institutions comply with Somalia’s financial-management and procurement laws.
One company appearing in the aviation authority’s procurement records is One Complete Services Ltd, which is listed against a $12,532 contract.
Documents reviewed by Daily Somalia show the company was registered on 10 October 2022. A commercial licence issued by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry identifies its business activity as “Facilities and Maintenance” and lists its address in Taleex, Hodan, Mogadishu.
Daily Somalia has also received information alleging that the company, represented by Younis Mohamed Noor, became involved in additional services for the Civil Aviation Authority.
The available audit record confirms the specific contract appearing in the document. It does not, on its own, establish the full value or extent of any wider business relationship between the company and SCAA.
That distinction matters.
What now requires scrutiny is whether additional contracts existed, how they were awarded, how much was paid, whether competitive procurement procedures were followed and whether any official connected to the Authority had a personal or financial interest in the arrangements.
Questions for SCAA leadership
The findings raise direct accountability questions for the management of the Civil Aviation Authority under Director General Ahmed Moallim Hassan.
Somalia’s Auditor General states that directors-general and other senior officials of federal institutions are responsible for maintaining effective internal controls, managing financial risks and making sure government transactions comply with applicable laws.
The central question is therefore not simply whether services were delivered.
It is whether public contracts were awarded, registered, paid and supervised according to the law.
Millions in airport revenue also questioned
The latest federal audit identifies another major issue involving Somalia’s aviation sector.
Under the concession agreement governing Aden Adde International Airport, the Federal Government is entitled to 25% of the gross revenue earned by Favori LLC, the private company operating the airport.
According to the Auditor General, Favori reported approximately $29.71 million in revenue during 2025.
That should have generated around $7.43 million for the Somali government.
Government financial records, however, showed receipts of only about $4.15 million, leaving an audited difference of approximately $3.27 million.
The Auditor General said the missing amount affected the completeness and accuracy of the government’s reported concession revenue.
This finding concerns the government-Favori concession and should not be attributed to SCAA without further evidence. But it exposes another weakness in the financial controls surrounding one of Somalia’s most important public assets.
Security questions at the airport
Daily Somalia has separately received allegations involving the construction of an airport gate and an intervention by security authorities.
Sources allege that the gate was constructed without the required prior coordination with relevant security agencies and was later closed following intervention by the National Intelligence and Security Agency, NISA.
Further claims concern what happened following the closure, including an alleged dispute involving the private company representative and security services at the Authority.
Daily Somalia has not independently verified these claims and is reporting them as allegations, not established facts.
Given the security sensitivity of Aden Adde International Airport, the issue warrants an official investigation capable of determining who authorized the construction, which company performed the work, whether security approval existed and what actions followed NISA’s intervention.
Allegations of exclusive access
Daily Somalia has also received claims that foreign aviation companies operating in Somalia were directed to use services provided by a particular private company.
No finding of wrongdoing can be made without examining the written instructions, contracts and relevant procurement records.
If the allegation is substantiated, however, authorities would need to explain the legal basis for restricting companies to one provider and whether such an arrangement complied with procurement and competition rules.
Ageing aviation systems
There are also unresolved questions surrounding Somalia’s aviation infrastructure and the replacement of ageing technical systems.
Information reviewed by Daily Somalia indicates that significant aviation equipment was inherited through earlier international aviation-management arrangements rather than purchased recently by the Federal Government.
An accountable aviation authority should be able to publicly establish what safety-critical equipment is currently operating, when it was acquired, its expected operational lifespan, maintenance costs, replacement schedules and the procurement process for new systems.
These are not minor administrative questions. They concern the systems responsible for managing aircraft moving through Somali airspace.
What the evidence shows, and what it does not
Daily Somalia’s review identifies two categories of information.
Documented findings include: the Auditor General’s concerns over unregistered contracts, the listed $12,532 One Complete Services contract, and the approximately $3.27 million discrepancy in the government’s expected Favori concession revenue.
The Auditor General’s broader 2025 review also examined compliance across 22 federal institutions, focusing specifically on procurement, personnel, assets and internal government controls.
Other claims concerning additional contracts, the airport gate, security intervention and alleged exclusive service arrangements remain allegations requiring further evidence and official investigation.
Daily Somalia will not present allegations as proven misconduct.
But documented audit concerns cannot be dismissed simply because other parts of the case remain under investigation.
The public deserves to know who received aviation contracts, how those contracts were awarded, what services were delivered, how much public money was paid, and who authorized the decisions.
Questions have also emerged over the tenure and term limits of SCAA’s senior leadership, including Director General Ahmed Moallim Hassan. Greater clarity is needed on the legal duration of the Director General’s mandate, the date of his appointment, and whether any renewal or extension has been formally authorized. Publication of the relevant appointment decisions and legal provisions would help establish whether the current leadership remains within its prescribed mandate.
Appointed acting head in 2018 and permanently confirmed on June 22, 2020, the Director General of the Somali Civil Aviation Authority has led the agency for eight years. Although Law No. 28 limits the term to four years renewable once, his mandate expired in June 2024. He remains in office despite changes in leadership and the expiration of his second term.
This situation persists because Article 16(2) omits mandate expiration from the legal grounds for vacating office, attaching no consequences to a lapsed term. Without explicit provisions declaring the post vacant or requiring a succession process, enforcement relies entirely on executive discretion. Consequently, an aligned leadership can silently bypass term limits, leaving the regulator of sovereign airspace operating without a valid statutory mandate.
