Editor's Review

President Ruto has said Kenya will not pull out its police officers from Haiti without a clear plan for a new mission to take over.

President William Ruto has said Kenya will not pull out its police officers from Haiti without a clear plan for a new mission to take over.

Speaking on Thursday, September 25, during an interview on France 24, President Ruto said the Kenyan troops will leave Haiti once the new force to take over from the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) has been formed.

“Our best position is that we have completed our mission; we were asked to step in, but one thing Kenya will not do is to walk away from Haiti without clarity on a transition.

“We will be there to make sure that the next mission is properly formed; it’s not yet clear when it will be formed, or how it will be resourced. There are so many things that are still hanging,” said Ruto.

The head of state also said the MSSM forces have managed to stabilize Haiti since their deployment in June 2024.

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File image of Kenyan Police Officers in Haiti. 

“When we went to Haiti, both the air and sea ports had been overrun by gangs. Today, they are operational. Schools and hospitals had also been overrun; today, they are operating. The palace was under siege from gangs; today, that is where the Presidential Council and Prime Minister sit," Ruto stated.

This comes days after President Ruto faulted other nations over unmet commitments towards restoring order in Haiti.

Speaking in New York on Monday, September 22, President Ruto expressed concern that the number of deployed officers to the Caribbean nation remains far below what was pledged.

Ruto also pointed out that the resources provided are also insufficient to sustain the scale of operations required in the troubled nation.

"If we are sending an additional team, the mandate must be clear. We must also have a predictable resource package. It cannot be what Kenya has been through, which is a game of guesswork, if we are serious about solving the matter of Haiti,' he said.

Kenya has deployed a contingent of 735 officers to Haiti, while Guatemala has deployed 150 officers, El Salvador with 78, Jamaica with 23, the Bahamas with 3, and Canada with 1.

The mandate of the Kenya-led peace mission to Haiti is set to expire on October 2, 2025.

Meanwhile, the US is proposing a new force comprising up to 5,550 uniformed personnel, both police and soldiers, to be deployed in Haiti.

The proposed new force would rely on voluntary international contributions of personnel and funding and would be led by a group of representatives from countries that have contributed personnel.