Examining the Vulnerability of Nairobi to Terrorism: 2011 -2015

Abstract

This study examines the vulnerability of Nairobi to terrorist attacks between 2011 and 2015. The study has two objectives; the first objective is to examine and analyze factors that may explain the prevalence of terror attacks in Nairobi between 2011 and 2015. The second objective is to analyze factors underlying the likely inability of state institutions to deal with terrorism. This study guided by relative deprivation theory; the theory holds that feelings of deprivation and the feeling of frustration motivates individuals or groups decision to engage in collective action. Primary data was collected through questionnaires with open-ended questions and secondary data was obtained from published books, journals, government documents, NGOs documents and media sources. The study concluded that the prevalence of terrorist attacks in Nairobi is a result of combination of factors such as management of immigrants‟ movement in Nairobi, instrumentalization of religion, social decay and terrorism, poverty and urban marginalization, unemployment and trafficking of goods, and politicization of international and local grievances. It is also found that there are other factors that hindered state institutions to contain terror attacks such as human rights violations, corruption phenomena within security agencies, lack of enough transport facilitation, the deficit in human capacity, lack of corporation among security sectors, low level of engagement of police with technology and poor working conditions. The study recommends that in order to tackle the threat of terror in Kenya, the government of Kenya should make policies which address social economic and political marginalization such as control of religious extremism, youth unemployment, and balance of power respectively. The study recommends that the government of Kenya needs to build the capacity of security agencies by providing suitable training and allocation of adequate resources in order to facilitate surveillance and respond to terror attacks. In order to deal with the problem of immigration, the government of Kenya needs to tackle the issue of refugees being recruited to carry out terror attacks in the country.