Wednesday August 27, 2025
Somalia’s Auditor General Ahmed Issa Gutale speaks at a press conference in Mogadishu on Tuesday, where he accused the country’s top courts of blocking audits into their budgets, citing more than $1 million in unaccounted funds. Screengrab via Shabelle Media
Mogadishu (HOL) — Somalia’s Auditor General has accused three of the nation’s top courts of blocking mandatory financial audits, revealing that more than $1 million in funds went unaccounted as a result.
Auditor General Ahmed Issa Gutale told reporters Tuesday that the Supreme Court, the Benadir Regional Court, and the Benadir Regional Appeals Court all refused to cooperate with his office’s annual audit process. He said the judiciary’s resistance undermines transparency and violates Somalia’s public finance management laws.
The three courts collectively manage multimillion-dollar budgets. The Supreme Court at $2.7 million, the Benadir Regional Court at $2.1 million, and the Benadir Appeals Court at $937,000 for 2024. While 21 other government institutions submitted to audits this year, Gutale said these courts rejected oversight without providing any explanation.
As a result, Gutale’s office applied a risk assessment, which he said uncovered irregular receipts totalling $1,089,998.76 from fines, auctions, and asset seizures. The money, he noted, was not deposited into Somalia’s unified treasury system.
“This practice not only violates the country’s financial laws but also weakens the accountability principles the government has pledged to uphold,” Gutale said.
The allegations come as Somalia works to consolidate gains from recent international debt relief deals, which require strict fiscal discipline and transparent use of public funds. Civil society groups and anti-corruption advocates have warned that blocking audits could erode donor confidence and derail fragile governance reforms.
Somalia’s judiciary has not publicly commented on the accusations.