Kenya has frequently been in the news in recent years because of deadly attacks within the country by radical Islamist group al-Shabaab, most notably the assault on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi in September 2013, in which at least 67 people died. But is al-Shabaab the greatest threat to the country’s security, as many Kenyans believe? This report argues that the activities of internal radical and armed groups and, indeed, the nature of Kenyan politics itself, may in fact, pose greater threats.

About the author:

Andrews Atta-Asamoah is a senior researcher in the Conflict Prevention and Risk Analysis Division at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria. He holds a doctorate in political studies from the University of Cape Town and an MA from the Legon Centre for International Affairs in Ghana. Before joining ISS, he worked with the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre in Accra, Ghana. His areas of research interest include drug trafficking, peacekeeping, natural resource conflicts and African peace and security.

This report has been made possible with support from the government of the Netherlands. The ISS is also grateful for support from the other members of the ISS Partnership Forum: the governments of Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, japan, Norway, Sweden and the USA.