# Erigavo-Burao Road: 2013 Contributions Reported

> Somaliland Sun reported on 2013-09-28 that pledges and fundraisers were reducing funding worries for the Erigavo-Burao road…

- By: Editorial Team, Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com/about)
- Published: 1 October 2026
- Format: News story (reported from one named public source)
- Publication: Somali Construction Review (https://somaliconstructionreview.com)
- Subject: Infrastructure and Services
- Tags: roads, procurement, cost-control
- Web version: https://somaliconstructionreview.com/blog/erigavo-burao-road-2013-contributions

## Key points

- Somaliland Sun reported on 2013-09-28 that contributions from ministers, security forces, and local fundraisers were reducing funding worries for the Erigavo-Burao road.
- The report describes pledges and reported donations but no audited totals, and no contractor, cost, or post-2013 construction status is established.
- The article lists a foundation stone ceremony by President Silanyo in September 2013, but no evidence of works starting or completing.

On 28 September 2013, Somaliland Sun reported that worries over funding availability for the Erigavo–Burao road were slowly being negated by contributions from various quarters. The report does not establish what has happened since.

At a cabinet meeting chaired by President Ahmed Mahmud Silanyo, the Somaliland council of ministers approved an annual budget for 2014 worth **$220m** and pledged **$2000 each** towards the road linking Sanaag region to the rest of the country, according to the publication. The commander of the national army General Ismail Shakale and police commissioner Brigadier Abdilahi Iman Fadal pledged a monthly contribution of **one dollar per serving officer for three consecutive months**. Minister of Education Zamzam Abdi Aden pledged an unspecified amount from the public education sector.

Somaliland Sun reported that a fundraiser by Sanaag leaders at Imperial hotel in Hargeisa raised **over $1 million**, a second-hand figure with no independent record cited. In Erigavo, regional and local government leaders mobilised residents, producing a large but unspecified amount, with more fundraisers planned. A shepherd in Erigavo district, Ismail Gurhan, said he was ready to contribute livestock.

The road is reported as **375 kms**, starting from Ina Afmadoobe village east of Burao and connecting the Las Anod–Burao tarmac road to Erigavo through the Saraar plateau. The same article also describes it as **'over 300 Kms'**, an internal inconsistency. According to Mr Mohamed Ali, editor of www.medeshivalley.com, overland access to Erigavo takes at least **12 hours** on the nearest tarmac road, and the Erigavo–Burao distance is approximately **240 miles**.

President Silanyo laid a foundation stone in Afmadow village on the 16th of the month per the article's dateline (September 2013). No contractor, total cost, or recipient account is named. The publication describes the Diaspora's silence on fundraising as worrisome.

> **Note:** No evidence is available on whether construction began, continued, stalled, or completed after 2013. All pledges remain unverified.

## Questions

### Who were the main contributors pledged as of September 2013?

Somaliland Sun reported that each cabinet minister pledged $2000, the army commander and police commissioner pledged $1 per serving officer for three months, and the education minister pledged an unspecified amount from the public education sector.

### What total amount was reportedly raised at the Hargeisa fundraiser?

Somaliland Sun reported over $1 million was donated at a fundraiser by Sanaag leaders at Imperial hotel, but the figure is second-hand with no independent record.

### What is the funding gap for the road?

The report does not state a total project cost or funding requirement, so the gap is unknown.

## Sources

- [Somaliland: Contributions Galore for Erigavo-Burao Road Construction Funds](https://somalilandsun.com/somaliland-contributions-galore-for-erigavo-burao-road-construction-funds/) — Somaliland Sun, 2013-09-28