Kenya steps up anti-terror finance fight with elite training for 22 officials
The training is courtesy of the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition.
Twenty-two officials selected from the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), National Intelligence Service (NIS), Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) and other state agencies are set to receive specialised training on how to curb terror financing in the country.
The training is courtesy of the Islamic Military Counter Terrorism Coalition (IMCTC).
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Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya announced this on Tuesday during the launch of the training programme in Nairobi, an event attended by senior military officials from the coalition's member states and allied partners, including the United Kingdom and the USA.
"We will ensure to keep expanding the training to a number of ministries to cut across the board," she said, stressing the state's adoption of a whole-of-government approach to the fight against terrorism.
The skills, she said, would help destroy the lifeline of terrorism, which is heavily reliant on illicit financial flows.
"While we have made significant progress in disrupting terrorist networks and degrading their capabilities, one area remains a persistent and strategic enabler of terrorism: the financing mechanisms that sustain these groups. Terrorist financing fuels recruitment, planning, logistics, and operations. Without addressing the financial lifelines that sustain these networks, our broader counter-terrorism efforts risk being undermined," she explained.
She added that Kenya recognises that effectively countering terrorism financing requires robust international cooperation, shared intelligence, harmonised legal frameworks, and continuous capacity development.
National strategy
"This collaboration directly aligns with our national strategy on counter-terrorism financing and anti-money laundering," said the CS.
IMCTC's Secretary General, Major General Pilot Mohammed bin Saeed Al-Moghedi said the launch of the strategic initiatives in Kenya reflects a strong and clear commitment to confronting the threat of terrorism, which "knows no borders, does not differentiate between people, and aims to destabilize security, development, and stability across the globe".
"As an active member of the IMCTC and a key partner in the global efforts to combat terrorism, the Republic of Kenya plays a pivotal role in confronting security threats and challenges on the African continent," he noted.
He echoed CS Tuya's call for collaboration in the fight against terrorism as the surest way to defeat the scourge.
"As we all know, financing is the lifeline of terrorist organisations, and confronting it requires stronger international cooperation and the development of mechanisms to monitor, trace, and analyse suspicious financial flows. It also involves information sharing and capacity building to ensure a safer and more stable environment," he said.
IMCTC is a pan-Islamic coalition of 42 member states united in efforts to fight terrorists and Islamic State activities in their jurisdictions.
In 2022, Kenya became the 42nd nation to join the coalition that was established in 2015.
Colonel Aden Mohamed is the current KDF representative at the coalition that sits in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Member countries' delegates sit at the headquarters performing their duties and tasks related to the objectives of the coalition.
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