Skip to content

The security situation in Kenya is not entirely stable as its northern region continues to experience ethnic violence and marginalisation. Threats from non-state armed groups in Somalia contribute to this instability, and the country is involved in an armed conflict against al-Shabaab.1 The risk of political violence also tends to increase during election periods.2 As of 2022, reports state that armed violence and human rights violations persist in the country.3 Due to this instability, Kenya has very high levels of weapons and ammunition trafficking.4 Unexploded ordnance left in the country also continues to pose a threat.5

The African Union; the Regional Centre on Small Arms in the Great Lakes Region, the Horn of Africa and Bordering States (RECSA); the Multinational Small Arms and Ammunition Group (MSAG); the HALO Trust; and the Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC) are working on the ground to support the through-life management of ammunition, in collaboration with the Kenyan Ministry of Defence. Efforts have included organising weapons and ammunition management training, building armouries, providing physical security and stockpile management training to Kenyan police forces, and conducting regional train-the-trainer programmes.6


1 “Kenya: The Conflict in Focus,” Conciliation Resources, accessed July 14, 2022, https://www.c-r.org/programme/horn-africa/kenya-conflict-focus; "Kenya," Rule of Law in Armed Conflicts Project (RULAC), Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights, updated February 14, 2023, https://www.rulac.org/browse/countries/kenya

2 “Kenya’s Political Violence Landscape in the Lead-Up to the 2022 Elections," ReliefWeb, August 9, 2022, https://reliefweb.int/report/kenya/kenyas-political-violence-landscape-lead-2022-elections.

3 “World Report 2022: Kenya Events of 2021,” Human Rights Watch, accessed July 13, 2022, https://www.hrw.org/world-report/2022/country-chapters/kenya.

4 Philip Alpers and Michael Picard, Kenya – Gun Facts, Figures and the Law (GunPolicy.org, Sydney School of Public Health, University of Sydney, 2022), https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/kenya.

5 Noel Stott, “Kenya Hosts the First Review Conference on Landmines,” 2004, https://journals.co.za/doi/pdf/10.10520/EJC48307; Kenya Defence Forces. “Kenya Defence Forces – Clearing Unexploded Ordnance in Samburu,” Facebook, September 21, 2020, https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=936290213547011; “Kenya,” Landmine & Cluster Munition Monitor, accessed July 14, 2022, http://the-monitor.org/en-gb/reports/2019/kenya/view-all.aspx.

6 “Ammunition Management Activity Platform (A-MAP),” GICHD, 2022, https://a-map.gichd.org.

Launch the country dashboard

Map of Kenya

Further information

Accidental explosions

Since the Small Arms Survey began collecting data in 1979, one accidental explosion has been reported in Kenya.

Table 1. Accidental explosions in Kenya (1979–2021)

Year

Location

Owner/manager

Deaths

Injuries

2006

Nairobi

State (police)

0

0

Source: “Unplanned Explosions at Munitions Sites (UEMS) Database,” Small Arms Survey, updated December 15, 2021, https://smallarmssurvey.org/database/unplanned-explosions-munitions-sites-uems.

Cases of diversion

Several cases of diversion have been reported since 2019 in Kenya.

Table 2. Cases of diversion of arms, ammunition and explosives in Kenya since 2019

Year

Location

Description

2022

Thika

An AK-47 rifle and 30 rounds of ammunition were stolen from a police officer.

2022

Samburu

Four G3 rifles and 197 rounds of ammunition were stolen from police officers.

2020

Saboti

Three G3 rifles, magazines and ammunition were stolen from Saboti forest division officers.

2020

Kibos

An unknown number of firearms and ammunition were stolen from a police station.

2019

Nandi

An unknown number of guns were stolen from a police station.

Source: Peter Stubley, “Guns Stolen from Police While They Watched the Champions League,” Independent, April 18, 2019, https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/guns-stolen-police-kenya-champions-league-barcelona-manchester-united-a8875721.html; Bruhan Makong, “Kenya: Police Officer Killed, Four Fire Arms Stolen Following Bandit Attack in Samburu,” AllAfrica, March 16, 2022. https://allafrica.com/stories/202203160404.html; “Security Agents Dispatched to Recover Stolen Firearm,” Kenya News Agency, May 2, 2020, https://www.kenyanews.go.ke/security-agents-dispatched-to-recover-stolen-firearm/; Geoffrey Ondieki, “Police Officer Charged with Stealing Colleague's Official Firearm,” Nation, June 9, 2022, https://nation.africa/kenya/counties/samburu/police-officer-charged-with-stealing-colleague-s-official-firearm--3843240; “Guns Stolen from Kibos Police Station during Curfew,” NTV Kenya, YouTube, March 30, 2020, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x417LONqBYk.

Disposal

To decrease the above-mentioned risks of accidental explosions and diversion, Kenya has disposed of its ammunition since 2006.

Table 3. Number of pieces of ammunition disposed of in Kenya (2006–19)

Year

Number of ammunition

2006

10,000

2007

10,000

2008

10,000

2009

10,000

2010

10,000

2019

366,000

Sources: Institute for Security Studies, “Disarmament and Destruction of Firearms Not a Panacea to Insecurity in Kenya,” ReliefWeb, April 22, 2010, https://reliefweb.int/report/kenya/disarmament-and-destruction-firearms-not-panacea-insecurity-kenya; PSCU, “President Kenyatta Destroys 8,700 Illegal Guns, Warns against Ownership of Illicit Arms,” The Coast Media Group, November 19, 2019, https://www.thecoast.co.ke/2019/11/20/president-kenyatta-destroys-8700-illegal-guns-warns-against-ownership-of-illicit-arms/14/28/news/thecoast/1173/07/; Manasseh Wepundi, et al., Availability of Small Arms and Perceptions of Security in Kenya: An Assessment (Geneva: Small Arms Survey, 2012), https://www.smallarmssurvey.org/resource/availability-small-arms-and-perceptions-security-kenya-assessment-special-report-16.

Needs

To further enhance safe and secure ammunition management, the following needs have been identified for Kenya:

  • Development or refinement of standards and procedures on stockpile management;
  • Capacity development for the destruction of surplus stockpiles;
  • Development of training manuals;
  • Capacity building to improve arms storage facility infrastructures; and
  • Capacity building through training on the International Small Arms Control Standards (ISACS), physical security and stockpile management, and the International Ammunition Technical Guidelines (IATG).

Source: Kenya, National Report on the Implementation of the Programme of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons (PoA) and the International Tracing Instrument (ITI) (New York: Permanent Mission of Kenya to the UN, 2022), https://smallarms.un-arm.org/country-profiles/KEN.

Published Date: Tuesday 7 of November 2023