Kenya to dispatch more police officers to Somalia

AMISOM officials attended security meetings regarding polling stations in Somalia [Photo: AMISOM]

NAIROBI, Kenya - Kenya is set to dispatch more police officers to Somalia, it has emerged, where they will serve under the African Union Mission Forces [AMISOM] who are responsible for peace and stability of the Horn of Africa nation.

Hillary Mutyambai, the Inspector of Police said the officers will boost the stability of Somalia, which has been battling insecurity for over three decades. He said the country deserves Kenya's support.

Mutyambai said seconding of officers to the Amisom has also exposed and widened the Kenyan team on their scope in policing, resulting in quality service delivery to the public in the future.

“He [IGP] also assured them of continued support and cooperation towards achieving the mandate of the African Union,” said a statement from his office.

The IGP spoke when he met African Union Police Selection Assistance and Assessment Team [SAAT] which has been camping in Nairobi. Kenya is a major force contributor to the Horn of Africa nation.

The team has been conducting an assessment of police officers for mission service in Somalia. They thanked the IG for continued support in the AU’s mandate in conflict resolution and capacity building of the Somalia Police Force.

Already, Kenya has close to 3,500 troops from Kenya Defense Forces [KDF] who are part of AMISOM. The troops, whose mandate will expire in December, are likely to stay a little longer in Somalia based on an independent report done by African Union.

KDF Chief General Robert Kibochi explained the current formation of Amisom makes it a force and argued one cannot win a war with force only. He said they need police to carry out civilian work, which soldiers cannot do.

Gen Kibochi said Kenya and other countries are pushing to have Amisom funded by the UN. This is because one of the main donors, the European Union, has stopped supporting the mission.

This has necessitated a reconfiguration of the operations of the mission, which is likely to be done by end of this year.

The troops have degraded the terrorists’ capability to launch attacks. For instance, the CDF said unlike between 2011 and 2012 when dozens of grenades and other weapons were being smuggled from Somalia, the trend had significantly dropped.

For months now, cross-border attacks by Al-Shabaab militants have significantly reduced according to reports. Kenya was struggling to contain attacks in Wajir, Garissa, Mandera, and Lamu counties which neighbor Somalia.

GAROWE ONLINE