Assessing The Legal Framework On Financing Terrorism In Kenya: A Case Study Of Al-Shabaab Terror Organization

Abstract

Terrorism is a ‘dog’ that continues to bite hard at the society. As acts of terrorism increase, it is evident that the terror organizations have finances which they use in planning and carrying out the said attacks. A terror attack cannot be successful without sufficient finances. Kenya, as a country has strict legislations on terrorism financing. However, Kenya continues to be a bedrock of terror attacks, an evidence that terrorism financing is still on the high. It is for this reason that this study seeks to find out why terrorism cases are still on the rise yet there are available laws regulating terrorism financing. This research sought to find out whether the existing laws on terrorism financing have been adequate in combating terrorism financing. It was undertaken based on the hypothesis that terrorism cases are on the rise due to poor implementation of the laws on terrorism financing. The available literature on regulation of terrorism financing and the analysis thereon does not touch on Kenya. It has majorly focused on global fight against terrorism financing. This research therefore addresses the issue on implementation of the laws on terrorism financing in Kenya. This study adopted a qualitative method for data collection. Information was collected both from primary and secondary sources. A questionnaire was used to collect information from various respondents. From the primary data, analysis was drawn based on the problem statement guiding this research. Through the analysis, it was realized that majority of the relevant stakeholders work individually and not together as a team. Hence, a major recommendation that working together would lead to reduced cases of terrorism financing. Further, the findings support the position that terrorism cases are on the rise due to poor implementation of terrorism financing laws