# Bakaara market: Mogadishu's biggest market

> Bakaara market in Mogadishu in numbers: how big it is, what it sells, the name, the war years, the August 2011 change of control, and the fires that keep hitting traders.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/economy/bakaara-market/
Last checked: 2026-11-12
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## How big it is

Bakara is the biggest market in Mogadishu. It "hosts more than 20 000 indoor businesses housed in some 7 000 buildings in addition to numerous outdoor businesses" ([EUAA, Somalia country focus 2025, citing World Bank, Somalia Country Economic Memorandum, June 2021, p. 104](https://www.euaa.europa.eu/coi/somalia/2025/country-focus/21-mogadishu/213-socioeconomic-indicators)). Radio Ergo calls it the largest market in Mogadishu ([Radio Ergo, 23 May 2024](https://radioergo.org/en/2024/05/another-fire-in-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-ruin-for-families/)).

## The name and the start

The market's Somali name is Suuqa Bakaaraha. Wikipedia says the name comes from *baqaar*, a grain store, and that the market began in late 1972, under the government of [Mohamed Siad Barre](/en/people/siad-barre/) ([Wikipedia, Bakaara Market](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakaara_Market)).

## What it sells

Wikipedia lists maize, sorghum, beans, peanuts, sesame, wheat, rice, petrol and medicine ([Wikipedia, Bakaara Market](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakaara_Market)). In August 2011 AFP described "a sprawling network of narrow streets" selling soft drinks, electronic goods and restaurant supplies, with money exchange services ([AFP via Terra Daily, 15 August 2011](https://www.terradaily.com/reports/Somali_businesses_warily_return_to_war-hit_market_999.html)). The traders who lost stock in recent fires ran clothing shops, tailoring, jewellery stores, juice stalls, electronics shops and clothing warehouses ([Radio Ergo, 7 February 2023](https://radioergo.org/en/2023/02/69636/); [Radio Ergo, 23 May 2024](https://radioergo.org/en/2024/05/another-fire-in-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-ruin-for-families/); [Dawan Africa, 21 July 2026](https://www.dawan.africa/news/fire-erupts-at-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-extensive-property-damage)).

## The war years

- **October 1993:** the market was one of the areas where the [Battle of Mogadishu](/en/history/battle-of-mogadishu-1993/) was fought ([Wikipedia, Bakaara Market](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakaara_Market)).
- **2011:** a UN report estimated that al-Shabaab earned up to **$60 million a year** from Bakara. African Union troops ([AMISOM](/en/institutions/amisom/)) took the market in August 2011. On 15 August AFP found traders slowly coming back, and troops found 137 artillery shells in an empty house there ([AFP via Terra Daily, 15 August 2011](https://www.terradaily.com/reports/Somali_businesses_warily_return_to_war-hit_market_999.html)).
- **2012:** by April 2012 buildings damaged in the fighting were being repaired, and the main street was busy again ([VOA, Peter Heinlein, 30 April 2012](https://www.voanews.com/a/370225/p1.html)).

## Fires

| When | What burned | Source |
|---|---|---|
| October 2007 | About one-third of the market, including some 200 shops and many smaller stalls, by a business committee's estimate | [Mail & Guardian, citing AFP, 4 October 2007](https://mg.co.za/article/2007-10-04-massive-fire-a-death-blow-to-somali-market) |
| 21 January 2023 | Property of about 300 families; about 50 workers lost jobs. The Bakara business committee put the loss at about $2.5 million. One tailor lost about $11,000, including seven sewing machines | [Radio Ergo, 7 February 2023](https://radioergo.org/en/2023/02/69636/) |
| 5 April 2024 | Around 200 small businesses. One clothing trader put his loss at $70,000, including a $30,000 stock loan | [Radio Ergo, 23 May 2024](https://radioergo.org/en/2024/05/another-fire-in-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-ruin-for-families/) |
| Late 2025 | Parts of the market, mainly the medicine section, Suuqa Daawada | [Dawan Africa, 21 July 2026](https://www.dawan.africa/news/fire-erupts-at-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-extensive-property-damage) |
| July 2026 | Clothing warehouses, electronics shops and a restaurant, spreading to two-storey buildings. Firefighters brought it under control after several hours; no deaths were reported | [Dawan Africa, 21 July 2026](https://www.dawan.africa/news/fire-erupts-at-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-extensive-property-damage) |

An engineer told Radio Ergo that the market has bare electrical wires near a fuel station and "no systems to handle fire outbreaks", and that fire engines struggle to reach burning shops. The Banadir Regional Administration said it planned to improve emergency firefighting services ([Radio Ergo, 23 May 2024](https://radioergo.org/en/2024/05/another-fire-in-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-ruin-for-families/)).

## Sources disagree

- **The 2007 fire.** AFP reported witnesses and security sources saying a stray bullet may have started it, with many residents blaming fighting near the former Defence Ministry ([Mail & Guardian, citing AFP](https://mg.co.za/article/2007-10-04-massive-fire-a-death-blow-to-somali-market)). Wikipedia, citing The [Columbus](/en/diaspora/columbus/) Dispatch, says a shell fired during fighting started it ([Wikipedia, Bakaara Market](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakaara_Market)).
- **The cause of recent fires.** Radio Ergo reported an electrical fault as the believed cause in 2023 ([Radio Ergo, 2023](https://radioergo.org/en/2023/02/69636/)). For July 2026, witnesses suggested an electrical fault, and the authorities had not confirmed the cause ([Dawan Africa](https://www.dawan.africa/news/fire-erupts-at-mogadishus-bakara-market-causes-extensive-property-damage)).

For shops and markets, see the [shops, food and markets directory](/en/businesses/shops-food-and-markets-directory/). For the city's budget, taxes, rents and wages, see [Mogadishu's economy](/en/economy/mogadishu-economy/).

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