State blames underdevelopment for insecurity in 23 counties
Interior CS Murkomen said decades of economic neglect, not lack of police presence, are fuelling banditry, cattle rustling and communal conflicts.
The government has blamed underdevelopment for persistent insecurity in 23 marginalised counties, including Baringo, Tana River and Turkana, saying decades of economic neglect, not lack of police presence, are fuelling banditry, cattle rustling and communal conflicts.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the government is now adopting a policy shift that goes beyond guns and bullets, focusing instead on long-term development as a permanent solution to insecurity.
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He said marginalisation, rooted in historical policy decisions, is the main driver of instability in regions that account for over half of Kenya’s land mass.
“It is not by accident or coincidence that 23 counties, which cover about 65 per cent of Kenya’s land mass, are constantly insecure. These counties form the regions that were declared as low-potential through Sessional Paper Number 10 of 1965,” he said.
Speaking at the Marie Garden Hotel in Kitui town, Murkomen noted that the government’s current security measures, such as deploying more officers or building police posts, only address the symptoms, not the underlying causes.
“The people taking up arms in these troubled counties have no schools to go to, no access roads, no water or meaningful economic activities to engage in,” he said.
“We are only dealing with the symptoms when we deploy more officers or build more police stations.”
He warned that insecurity will remain a national crisis unless development is prioritised in these neglected regions.
“Banditry, cattle rustling and pastoral conflicts will still be major security problems in the next 50 years, like they have been since Independence, unless urgent measures are taken to develop the affected areas,” the CS said.
Murkomen, who has come under pressure over rising insecurity in several counties, described as “unbelievable and ridiculous” the fact that neighbouring counties such as Kitui and Tana River are not connected by road, limiting trade, investment and security operations.
“To access Hola town in Tana River, Kitui residents and traders have to travel long distances either through Mombasa and Malindi, or through Mwingi and Garissa, as no road connects the two counties,” he said.
He also cited Tiaty in Baringo County as an example of a region whose inaccessibility continues to fuel insecurity not only locally, but also in the neighbouring counties of Elgeyo Marakwet and Turkana.
Murkomen urged security agencies to adopt modern strategies that prioritise infrastructure and social development, calling for affirmative action to uplift the marginalised regions.
“The road from Isiolo to Moyale was insecure until President Mwai Kibaki built it, opening up the North-Eastern region. Today, it’s no longer risky to drive to Moyale even at night,” he said.
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