At least 600 Kenya Defence Force (KDF) personnel are undergoing joint UK and Kenya training at Archers Post in Samburu County ahead of their deployment to counter-terrorism in Somalia.
The British High Commission in Nairobi in a press statement said this was the first mass training exercise since the Covid-19 outbreak with more than 1500 soldiers being trained since 2016.
The training of the British Army and the KDF contributes an estimated Ksh500 million to the Kenyan economy each year.
British Deputy High Commissioner Julius Court in a visit to the training camps said the initiative had seen Kenya and the UK developing a long-lasting partnership in combating terror while promoting peace and stability.
"We are also working with the African Union (AU) to build its’, and member states’, capacity to prevent, manage and respond to conflicts in Africa, enhancing the capability of Troop Contributing Countries like Kenya participating in AU or United Nation peacekeeping missions such as AMISOM,” stated Court.
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In January this year, Prime Minister Boris Johnson and President Uhuru Kenyatta agreed a new, ambitious, Strategic Partnership that will further elevate the strong relationship shared between the UK and Kenya.
The Strategic Partnership will help guide our work over the next five years, as we work with Kenya to respond to some of the most pressing challenges of our time including maintaining security and stability by tackling global terrorism, violent extremism, organised crime and corruption.
President Uhuru Kenyatta in his recent visit to France said Kenya had made major strides towards defeating terrorism in the region.
Kenyatta told the media it was impossible to tell when Kenya will withdraw its troops from Somalia.
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