An estimated 924 people of different nationalities were currently working in Mogadishu illegally, officials said.
A Cabinet meeting chaired by Somali Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon in Mogadishu on Thursday received a report on the illegal migrants.
A memo at the end of the meeting stated: “Illegal aliens numbering 924 are working in the capital without authorisation from the Ministry of Commerce or from the immigration section of the ministry of Interior Affairs.”
According to the document, foreigners needed approval from the ministry of Commerce or Immigration before settling in the country.
Mogadishu has been recovering from war fatigue since the militants of the Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab abandoned their positions nearly two years ago.
The positive development has also attracted dignitaries and professionals to Mogadishu, with some opting for work in the Somali capital.
The Somali government stated that most of the people unlawfully working in the country had melted into the operations of the African Union and the African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom).
“We appointed four government ministers to enquire the abnormality involving illegal engagement of foreign workers,” said the Cabinet memo released on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the spokesman of Amisom, Colonel Ali Aden Hamud, stated on Thursday that the peacekeepers would tackle the escalating violence in Mogadishu.
The officer was reacting to the recent wave of explosions and suicide missions in the capital.
“We are going to deal with the perpetrators of blasts that mainly harm the general public,” said Col Hamud.
He also confirmed that Sierra Leonean peacekeepers were firmly serving with Amisom in Kismayu town, 500km south of Mogadishu.
“We are confident that the contingent from Sierra Leone will greatly contribute to the stabilisation of the Juba regions (in southern Somalia),” remarked the spokesman.
Kenyan troops have been active in the Juba regions for nearly two years; its troops later joined Amisom.
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