State boosts security budget by Sh23b amid rising crime threats

The government has allocated an additional Sh23.3 billion for security and defence expenditure in the 2024/2025 financial year as the country grapples with insecurity locally and regionally.

According to the second supplementary budget released by the National Treasury last week, the National Intelligence Service (NIS) has received Sh9.9 billion in additional expenditure.

“The increase is on account of enhancement of operations and maintenance to cater for security operations,” stated the National Treasury in the latest expenditure plan. The increase brings the total budget for the country’s spy agency to a record high of Sh56.1 billion for the current financial year.

The Ministry of Defence has also seen an increase of Sh6.7 billion in its annual budget which entails Sh6.5 billion for defence and Sh230 million for administration, planning and support services.

The National Police Service that had been allocated Sh108 billion in the current financial year has been allocated an additional Sh6.2 billion for policing services.

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The additional allocations underline a rising trend in Kenya’s security and defense spending over the past three years with the country ranking among the highest relative to the country’s regional neighbours.

In the second supplementary budget for the 2023/2024 financial year, the National Police Service, NIS and Ministry of Defence received a total of Sh17.7 billion in additional allocations meant for operational support and various peace missions.

This included an additional Sh550 million to the Kenya Police meant for security operations in the country, Sh400 million for emergency response and Sh166 million for training officers for peace missions.

“The government will continue to strengthen the security capabilities through the recruitment of additional police, prison and military officers and expansion of prison, police and military infrastructure and equipment,” stated

Treasury Cabinet Secretary John Mbadi in the Budget Policy Statement released earlier this month.

“The government will also prioritise digitization of police stations and services, modernisation of security products and services including lifting processes on ID acquisition, unique personal identifier and passports to enhance access to services,” he stated.

Some of the security missions Kenya is engaged in include deployment of 600 police officers last year to the Caribbean nation of Haiti that has been plagued by gang conflict.

The country’s deployment of the security personnel under the aegis of the United Nations, UN has, however, been stalked by controversy including several legal challenges in Kenya and most recently a halt in funding from the United States following the re-election of President Donald Trump.

In September last year, the National Treasury wrote to the Controller of Budget seeking to draw Sh181 million in additional expenditure to cater for the security mission in Haiti.

The funding request came as the Kenyan security personnel deployed in Haiti complained about delays in salaries.  

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Kenya’s military expenditure in 2023 stood at over Sh130 billion and ranked ninth in Africa, just behind South Sudan, Ethiopia and Tunisia.

In recent years Kenya has also diversified its sources for arms imports, with the United Arab Emirates, UAE fast rising as a key supplier of aircraft and amoured vehicles.

In 2022,a third of the amoured personnel carriers (APCs) imported into the country came from the UAE and in 2018, the gulf state supplied 8 light helicopters.

Kenya’s increased expenditure on the military and police also comes amid a sharp increase in local incidences of crime in the country.