Kenya to host UN peace keeping engineering unit

May 18 , 2015 At a UN-Japan delegation courtesy call on President Kenyatta at the State House, Nairobi Kenya, United Nations Director of Operational Support Services, Houston Fergusson announced that Kenya will host the United Nations Peace Keeping Rapid Deployment of Engineering, Africa Unit. He said the move would boost the capacity of African countries who contribute troops to UN peace keeping missions.

The UN Engineering Unit is being established by the UN with support from Japan, and is expected to fill a critical gap in peace keeping.

President Kenyatta welcomed the UN decision and responded by saying that

“Kenya is a key contributor of peace keepers and will also benefit from the unit,”

Kenyatta also assured the unit of his support, as the country battles militancy. He is quoted as saying “Kenya’s effort to stabilize the region comes at a cost. My government, however, remains committed to a peaceful region,”

The president also talked about the sacrifices Kenya has made” in hosting refugees from different countries since independence. In that aspect he said

“Despite all the security challenges the country has undergone, it has kept its doors open for hundreds of thousands of refugees from across the continent,”