Hassan Ali Khaire, who is a Norwegian citizen, has been appointed Prime Minister of Somalia.

Khaire (49) was Thursday appointed by the new Somali president Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed. The new prime minister has dual Norwegian and Somali citizenship.

Previously Khaire has been regional director for the Norwegian Refugees Committee (NRC) for the Horn of Africa. He has also been one of the Executives of Soma Oil & Gas.

Khaire was born in Somalia and came as a refugee to Vestre Slidre, Valdres as a 21-year-old according to VG. Later he studied in Oslo. In 2006 he received the job as Regional Director for NRC.

President Mohamed won the elections in Somalia earlier this month and was sworn in Wednesday. As is the case for Khaire, he has experience from abroad, and has both American and Somali citizenship.

Somalia has been affected by conflict and crises for decades, and no Government has been able to control the country since the early 1990s.

The extremist Islamist group al-Shabaab still constitutes a major threat. In addition, the country is on the brink of a severe famine due to drought and conflict.

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today