Lamu Port Expansion Raises Security Concerns in Kenya

Plans are in a pipeline for the Kenyan Ports Authority to expand the Lamu Port, which commands an initial investment of U.S.$2.1 billion. Kenya's U.S.$3.6 billion ports master plan will transform the country's sea, lake and dry ports over the next 30 years.

The vast potential of the multi-billion dollar development must not be undermined by organised crime and terrorism writes Mohamed Daghar, regional co-oordinator for East Africa and Willis Okumu, senior researcher at the Institute for Security Studies Nairobi, and Denis Ombuna Simon, principal security enforcement officer at Kenya Ports Authority.

The Al-Shabaab terror group staged an attack on Lamu on January 3, 2022 that left several people dead including three U.S. defence staff, and destroyed aircraft and vehicles. Lamu is close to the Somalia border, where Al-Shabaab is a dominant presence.

Al-Shabaab notoriously focuses on state infrastructure, damaging property and fostering fear in local communities. Attacks like this could negatively impact on the new port development. In 2019, Kenya's government banned trade between Kenya and Somalia due to security threats. The measures were also aimed at countering the syndicates involved in illegal fishing, human trafficking, contraband goods and terror attacks.

Despite government efforts to encourage business in Lamu, evidence of organised crime near the port persists.