Kenya to establish Consulate General in Haiti

In a Cabinet dispatch on Tuesday, the consulate will be mandated to provide strategic support to Kenya’s leadership role in restoring law and order in the war-torn nation.

The position will be held by former Deputy Inspector General of the Administration Police Noor Yarow Gabow whose appointment as Consul-General to Haiti was approved by the National Assembly in January.

Kenya has so far sent about 800 officers to Haiti in the mission approved by the U.N. Security Council in October 2023.

It comprises more than 1,000 officers from other countries like Jamaica, Guatemala and El Salvador who are working alongside Haiti’s national police.

The troops have faced serious clashes with Haitian gangs, leading to the death of two Kenyan officers and leaving two others injured.

The injured officers were evacuated to the neighbouring Dominican Republic for medical care.

The mission, whose most funding and equipment the U.S. has provided, has struggled to secure significant contributions from other countries.

It was further thrown into jeopardy after the U.S. froze its financial contributions to the force’s United Nations fund in February, which stopped $13.3 million in pending aid. 

Amid rising concerns about the capability of Kenyan police officers serving under the Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission in Haiti, Inspector General of Police, Douglas Kanja, has asserted that Kenyan officers were well-trained before being deployed to help Haitian police combat gangs in the Caribbean nation in June 2024.