Kenya seeks Uganda’s help to end banditry in North Rift

Kenya is reaching out to Uganda in an attempt to defeat banditry in the country.

On Tuesday, Interior Principal Secretary said they had with East African Community, Arid and Semi-Arid Lands CS Rebecca Miano lead a delegation from Kenya to a high-level security mission with the Uganda authorities in Moroto.

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“In our continued efforts to offer a lasting solution to the banditry menace and restore order in the North Rift Counties of Kenya, we will go out of the way to consult widely,” PS Omollo said in a statement.

The PS noted that the long, mutual partnership and cordial relations between the two states was emphasised as reason enough to revisit the Cross-Border Programme for Sustainable Peace and Development MoU, which was signed by the two governments on September 12, 2019 at Moroto, Uganda.

The deal sought sustainable peace and development in the Turkana-Pokot-Karamoja region along the border of the two countries.

During the signing, the President Uhuru Kenyatta said the agreement would help ensure long-lasting peace for people of the two states and thus facilitate sustainable development.

The Kenya-Uganda border areas have over the last four decades seen various conflicts,  of which are linked to wider cross-border and regional conflicts.

The roots of these conflicts are the scarce shared natural resources such as water and pasture for pastoralists due to reduced access to land, water and other natural resources due to increasing demographic and environmental pressure as well as climate change.

However, PS Omollo noted that inasmuch as the MoU has helped in pacifying the region and curbing insecurity, “it is still imperative to collectively address the socio-economic challenges along the borders of Turkana county (Kenya) and the Karamoja Region (Uganda)”.

Kenyan security forces have launched an operation to clear bandits from its northern Rift Valley Region and recover illegal firearms following an order by President William Ruto.

Following the launch of the operation, some bandits are said to be retreating to Uganda to evade arrests.