The Transitional National Government (TNG) of Somalia has started collecting taxes in the capital, Mogadishu the first tax collection in 11 years - a senior official told IRIN.

The tax collection, the first by the TGN since it was installed in October last year, began on Sunday at the main livestock market in Mogadishu. "This is a pilot project to see how it will work," Abdirahman Dinari, the TNG director of information, said. The trial period would last a month, and then "other markets and commodities will be taxed", he added.

The process was started in the livestock market, because "livestock is the most commonly traded commodity, and if it succeeds here it will succeed elsewhere", Dinari said. As this was the first time in 11 years that taxes were being collected in Mogadishu, people had to be sensitised to the idea of paying taxes, and so the process "has to be started incrementally", he said.

The taxes are being collected by the Banadir (Mogadishu and environs) regional authority. Tax per goat or sheep is rated at 2,000 Somali shillings (US $0.11), per head of cattle 5,000 shillings (US $ 0.28), and per camel 10,000 shillings ( US $0.57).

So far, people seem to support the idea of taxation. "Many people welcome the idea, because they equate taxes with government. How long and how much of it they will support is open to question," a Mogadishu resident told IRIN.

Meanwhile, Mogadishu faction leader Muse Sudi Yalahow is reportedly opposed to the TNG's action, and has called it "illegal" 'Xog-ogaal' a Mogadishu daily reported on 4 June.