Kenya received Sh956 million as reimbursements for its defence forces fighting militia in war-torn Somalia during the financial year ended June 2025, marking a rebound after last year's historic collapse but still far below previous peaks.
Data from the Treasury shows the receipts were more than 11 times higher than Sh86 million in 2023-24, but still a fraction of the billions Kenya earned in earlier years when donor funding for African Union (AU) operations in Somalia was more stable.
The receipts were Sh6.98 billion in 2022-23, while the year before brought in Sh3.6 billion. The highest inflows were recorded in 2020-21 at Sh8.9 billion, nearly double the Sh4.6 billion received in 2019-20.
The funds are reimbursements paid by the AU and its international partners—mainly the European Union and United Nations (UN)—to offset the cost of deploying the Kenya Defence Forces in Somalia.
Initially deployed as the African Union Mission in Somalia, the force was restructured into the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (Atmis) in April 2022, before evolving into the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (Aussom) this year as part of Somalia's gradual takeover of its own security.
The transition from Atmis to Aussom officially ended on June 30, 2025, opening a new chapter in the long chain of AU-led interventions in war-ravaged Somalia that began in 2007.
"Aussom officially began operations and its mandate on July 1, 2025, and is scheduled to conclude in December 2029, to support the Federal Government of Somalia to degrade Al-Shabaab and affiliates, support stabilisation in Somalia and enable state-building priorities and ultimately facilitate the orderly transfer transferring of security responsibilities to Somali forces," Ministry of Defence wrote in a statement on its website on July 13.
However, Aussom's future is clouded with uncertainty, with financial backers showing some fatigue.
The UN Security Council on May 12, 2025, for instance, failed to authorise the activation of Resolution 2719 of 2023, which set out a framework that allowed the global body to cover for the first time up to 75 percent of costs associated with AU-led peace support operations. That left the AU-led mission in Somalia without a reliable financing source, casting doubt on Aussom's effective functioning.
The European Union — the single largest contributor to the AU mission in Somalia with commitments of nearly €2.7 billion (about Sh408.88 billion) committed since 2007—is reportedly not keen to match previous levels of support, signalling shifting geopolitical priorities.
For Kenya, the drop in reimbursements could pose an existential financial and security dilemma. The funding has, over the years, helped Nairobi plug the defence costs of its troops in Somalia without overstretching the budget.
Kenya formally sent about 4,660 soldiers to Somalia in October 2011 after incessant attacks and kidnapping of civilians by the Al-Shabaab militant group within its territory, numbers which have since been gradually trimmed over the years.
A year later, the UN Security Council gave Kenya the green light to integrate with Amisom, lessening the cost burden on taxpayers as a result of the incursion.
Nairobi is not considering withdrawing the KDF troops because this will be risky due to the potent threat posed by the Al-Shabaab, which has in the past staged cross-border raids and bombings on civilians in northeastern Kenya.
“The idea was never to have a permanent foreign force in Somalia. But we must avoid a rushed exit that could jeopardise regional security. In fact, in certain instances, we hear of such real threats [of resurgent activity by Al-Shabaab],” Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi told sister publication, the Daily Nation, late May.
“That’s why it’s important to continue collaborating with the government of Somalia for a stable handover. This is not just about Somalia — it’s about the stability of the entire region.”
Troops under Aussom are set to get $828 (about Sh107,010) per soldier per month this financial year ending June 2026, based on the UN Secretary-General’s report in May to the Security Council, slightly lower than the reportedly $1,028 (about Sh132,860) paid previously.
The take-home for soldiers is lower as governments deduct administrative costs. Kenya, for example, reportedly used to deduct about $200 (Sh25,848), leaving soldiers with about $800 (Sh103,392) each.
