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Somalia to get more ATMs, debit cards

Premier Bank plans to install five ATMs in the capital city of Mogadishu; they should be welcome, since the nation's only other ATM is reportedly not working.

April 28, 2015

Premier Bank, an FI in Mogadishu, Somalia, has announced a plan to increase the number of ATMs in the country. To this end, the bank has entered an agreement with Mastercard to issue debit cards, and has purchased five ATMs, a Reuters report said.

Premier Bank managing director Mahat Mohamed Ahmed told Reuters that the bank plans to issue 15,000 debit and prepaid cards to its customers by the end of the year. (Only about 3 percent of the country's 10 million adult inhabitants are banked, the report said.)

Accountholders will be able to use their cards at ATMs that Premier Bank has purchased and will install in highly secure locations. Cards will also be compatible with international ATMs through the MasterCard network, the report said.

Somalia celebrated the installation of the the African nation's first ATM last October. However, according to unconfirmed reports in the Reuters story, that ATM — located in the lobby of an upscale hotel — is not working at the moment.