By PSCU

President Uhuru Kenyatta holds bilateral talks with United Nations secretary general Ban Ki-moon, on the sidelines of the 24th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government of the African Union, at AU Headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, January 2015. Photo/PSCU

President Uhuru Kenyatta has urged the United Nations to support Amisom, alike other peacekeeping missions.

Uhuru made the request during talks with UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon, on the sidelines of the European Development Days (EDD) on Wednesday.

The closure of Dadaab refugee camp featured. Ban conveyed the UN’s concern for a humane process, which the President assured.

The government cited security threats as reasons for closing the world’s largest camp hosting 329,811 refugees who ran away from the neighbouring country in the wake of the 1991 civil war.

Noting Kenya has hosted the refugees for a quarter a century, Uhuru said the exercise is timely as stability is returning to the war-torn country.

But Uhuru said more, including supporting the Somalia government needs to done for lasting solutions.

He cited humanitarian assistance and backing for the country’s security forces for the sake of regional peace.

The President said the UN should take up the role of coordinating efforts by different countries to support Somalia’s security forces.

Uhuru reiterated the need to reinvigorate Amisom and the Somalia National Army in line with conclusions from the High Level Conference on Somalia held in Istanbul, Turkey, in February.

He also informed Ban of the urgent need to provide Amisom with force multipliers for better operational capabilities.

“There is urgent need to ensure predictable, adequate and sustainable funding for Amisom through UN-assessed contributions,” he said.

During the talks , Uhuru thanked the UN for supporting Kenya’s war against terrorism through the Counter Terrorism Committee.

He emphasised Kenya’s support for the implementation and review of the UN Global Counter-terrorism Strategy and the UN Plan of Action to Prevent Violent Extremism.

The review of the counter-terrorism strategy is ongoing in the context of the UN General Assembly. It is expected that a new resolution outlining the new strategy will be adopted on June 30.

The President and the secretary general also discussed strengthening the UN office in Nairobi.

Uhuru expressed Kenya’s willingness to continue working closely with the United Nations in addressing global challenges.

Source: The Star