Haiti Receives Kenyan Offer to Lead Multinational Force for Security Reinforcement

Haiti has responded with immense interest to Kenya’s proposal to lead a 1,000-strong multinational force aimed at enhancing security in the violence-plagued Caribbean nation.

In an official statement released on Sunday, Haitian Foreign Minister Jean Victor Geneus expressed the country’s gratitude for the display of African solidarity. The statement emphasized that Haiti eagerly anticipates the arrival of Kenya’s proposed evaluation mission.

The Kenyan announcement, made on Saturday and conveyed by Foreign Minister Alfred Mutua, highlighted their willingness to deploy 1,000 police agents to assist in training and supporting Haitian law enforcement in confronting the violent gangs that have taken control of much of the capital, Port-au-Prince.

For a Kenyan-led deployment to proceed, it would require approval from the United Nations Security Council, along with formal consent from local Haitian authorities. Notably, the council has already requested Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to present a report on potential options for Haiti, including the possibility of a UN-led mission, by mid-August.

In their pursuit of a country to lead a multinational force, U.S. diplomats have been actively engaged in the process. Kenya’s involvement in peacekeeping operations within its own region, such as in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Somalia, has positioned it as a democratic anchor in East Africa.

Haiti currently faces significant challenges, as approximately 80 percent of Port-au-Prince is under the control of armed gangs. The country is grappling with a multitude of humanitarian, political, and security crises, compounded by a weak government and overwhelmed security forces. Violent crimes, including kidnappings for ransom, carjackings, rapes, and armed thefts, have become alarmingly common.

Both Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry and UN Secretary-General Guterres have been urging for international intervention for nearly a year. However, until Kenya’s proposal, no country had come forward to lead such an effort.

It’s worth noting that a UN peacekeeping mission operated in Haiti from 2004 to 2017 but fell out of favor after a cholera outbreak, which claimed 9,500 lives and was traced back to infected UN personnel from Nepal.

In response to the escalating security situation, the United States has ordered nonessential embassy personnel and their families to leave Haiti as soon as possible. This decision comes in the wake of a recent incident where a young American nurse and her infant child were kidnapped in the country, as reported by the Christian aid group she works for.