Khat traders in Somalia and Kenya caught up in a conflict between two neighboring nations

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A Somali trader takes khat, a mild narcotic drug meant for exports to Somalia, out of bags, 21 June 2003 at the small Wilson airport in Nairobi. Kenya has imposed a ban on all flights from the country into war-wracked neighboring Somalia, sources at Nairobi Airport's control tower said 21 June. Kenya has in the past accused Somalia, which has not had a recognised government since dictator Mohamed Siad Barre was overthrown in January 1991, of being responsible for the infiltration of arms into the country. AFP PHOTO/SIMON MAINA (Photo credit should read SIMON MAINA/AFP/Getty Images)

 

Somali Khat traders are feeling the pinch of massive business losses as a result of the tensions between the governments of Kenya and Somalia.

Some of the traders said they are worried about their family’s livelihoods as their livelihoods had come to a standstill and did not know when the Somali government would lift the ban on khat imports from Kenya.

A number of Kenyan khat traders have also been affected by the ban and have confirmed that Somalia has not imported khat for 10 months putting their families’ lives at risk and facing widespread unemployment.

They said they had lost a lot of money on Khat ban and called on the leaders of Somalia and Kenya to reconcile their differences so that they could continue their trade.

Diplomatic disputes between Somalia and Kenya have affected Kenyan khat traders in Somalia and Kenya.

There have been repeated calls for a solution to the dispute between the two governments but still unfruitful.