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Sasha Aslanian
St. Paul, Minn.

Swedish delegation to study area Somali businesses

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The entrepreneurial success of Minnesota's Somali community has attracted the attention of Sweden.

A 24-person delegation from Sweden will spend a week studying the rise in Somali-owned businesses in the Twin Cities.

Hussein Samatar is with the African Development Center, which is hosting the visitors. He said Somalis have launched approximately 1,500 businesses in Minnesota in the past five years.

"You do have a community that believes in small business and entrepreneurship and they believe it's their way of building wealth for middle class and upward prosperity," Samatar said.

Sweden has about half the number of Somalis as Minnesota. The visitors are interested in the link between entrepreneurship and successful assimilation in a new culture.