Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura has refuted the claims that the US funding freeze for the Kenya-led Haiti Multi-national Security Support mission (MSS) will jeopardise the ongoing operations.
Mwaura said there is enough funding to support the mission until the end of September 2025.
He explained that while a portion of the money contributed by the US remains temporarily held following an order by President Donald Trump, there is enough to last for a long while.
“While a portion of the undisbursed US contribution amounting to $15 million (Sh1.9 billion) has been temporarily held due to the US presidential directive, the fund remains well-resourced to support the mission until the end of September 2025,” a statement read.
Mwaura clarified that the MSS mission is supported by the UN Trust Fund for Haiti, established under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2699 in October 2023.
He noted that the Kenya-led mission also includes police deployments from Guatemala, Jamaica, El Salvador, Bahamas and Belize.
He said that as of the end of 2024, US$110.3 million (Sh14.3 billion) had been pledged by several countries, including the USA, Canada, France, Turkey, Spain, Italy and Algeria.
Mwaura said $85 million (Sh10.9 billion) had been received by the Trust Fund, including substantial amounts from the United States.
He assured that Kenya remains committed to the mission.
“Kenya and its partners remain fully committed to ensuring the mission transitions to a full UN-led operation to guarantee its long-term financial sustainability and security mandate,” he said.
The MSS mission, while approved by the UN Security Council, is not a United Nations operation and currently relies on voluntary contributions.
The mission has so far made little progress toward helping Haiti restore order.
PS for foreign affairs Korir Sing'oei said despite the freeze, there was enough money in the trust fund to underwrite the mission through the end of September.
“We are very confident that any freeze would not impair our ability to be able to continue with this mission," he told Reuters.
Sing'oei added that he was hopeful the MSS would soon be converted to a UN peacekeeping mission, which would make it eligible for direct UN funding.
