HiLiN

This paper examines the political economy of financial regulation in post-conflict Somalia, with a focus on the remittance sector and the implementation of Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) reforms. It situates Somalia’s compliance with global financial integrity norms—particularly those promoted by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF)—within the broader context of post-HIPC financial normalisation, regulatory conditionality, and institutional fragility. Drawing on fieldwork, regulatory analysis, and interviews with Somali financial actors, the study analyses how AML/CFT regimes interact with informal financial infrastructures such as hawala networks, which are vital to household survival and economic resilience. It argues that these reforms, while ostensibly technical, are deeply political, often reinforcing hierarchies of surveillance, exclusion, and donor-driven governance. The paper calls for a more context-sensitive approach to financial regulation that safeguards remittance access, enhances institutional legitimacy, and reconciles global standards with the realities of Somalia’s hybrid financial landscape.