At a gathering renowned for ambitious ideas and discreet negotiations, Somaliland arrived in Davos with a focused message centred on international recognition, foreign investment and deeper integration into global economic and political networks. Officials said the self-declared republic used the World Economic Forum as a platform to argue that it deserves formal legitimacy and greater engagement from major global actors.
Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, the President of Somaliland, spent the week on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum highlighting the region’s relative stability and untapped economic potential, particularly its strategic location along key global trade routes. Somaliland has operated as a de facto independent entity since the early 1990s, but continues to seek formal recognition from the international community.
One of Abdullahi’s most notable engagements in Davos was a meeting with Eric Trump, the son of US President Donald Trump, according to an aide and others familiar with the discussions. The meeting took place on Wednesday in a hotel conference room close to the main Davos venue, coinciding with the US President’s address to global business leaders at the forum.
Also present during the discussions was Isaac Herzog, whose country became the first United Nations member state to recognise Somaliland last month. His participation added diplomatic weight to the meeting, signalling growing international interest in the region’s political and economic future.
During the closed-door talks, Abdullahi outlined a range of investment opportunities in Somaliland, placing particular emphasis on the deep-water Berbera Port. The port occupies a strategically important position along a major maritime corridor connecting Europe, the Middle East and Asia, and Somaliland officials see it as central to transforming the region into a logistics and trade hub for East Africa.
Speaking to Reuters on Thursday, Abdullahi described the discussions as positive and constructive, confirming that he had met both Eric Trump and Herzog. He said the conversations focused on Somaliland’s economic prospects and its ambition to build partnerships that could accelerate development and strengthen its case for international recognition.
Herzog later said in a post on X that he was pleased to have met the Somaliland president in Davos, although he did not elaborate on the substance of the talks or refer to Eric Trump’s involvement. Requests for comment sent to Eric Trump’s representatives went unanswered, and the White House declined to comment on the meeting.
The outreach in Davos comes amid changes to the Trump family’s business ethics rules. During Trump’s first term, family members were restricted from pursuing new business ventures outside the United States. That limitation was lifted shortly before Trump’s second inauguration, potentially opening the door to overseas commercial engagements.
For Somaliland, which declared independence from Somalia in 1991 following the collapse of the central government, the Davos push reflects a more assertive strategy. After more than three decades of relative peace and self-governance without formal recognition, Abdullahi signalled that the region now intends to actively leverage its stability and strategic geography to attract investors and compel the international community to take its aspirations seriously.
