The Budget Committee has asked the Treasury to add the Sh4 billion to the Sh17.5 billion, pushing the arms budget to Sh21.5 billion.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute last month revealed that Kenya slashed its spending on military hardware by half to Sh1.3 billion ($13 million) in 2017 from Sh2.8 billion the previous year.
Uganda ended its lull last year with an arms stockpile worth Sh1.8 billion, a departure from 2016 when it made no purchase.
Parliament has added the military Sh4 billion for weapons acquisition for the year starting July, positioning the Kenyan army for a bullish entry into the global arms market following a lull that saw Uganda overtake it in arsenal spending last year.
The Budget Committee has asked the Treasury to add the Sh4 billion to the Sh17.5 billion, pushing the arms budget to Sh21.5 billion.
The committee cut the budget for establishing an industrial park in Naivasha, provision of loans to small businesses, industrial research cash under the Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute and money for constituency industrial centres to accommodate the enhancement.
“Sh2 billion be reallocated from the funds for acquisition of land for the Naivasha industrial park to the military modernisation,” directed the Budget committee. Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) had gone slow on the acquisition of weapons as neighbouring Uganda made a strong comeback to lead in East Africa’s arms race.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute last month revealed that Kenya slashed its spending on military hardware by half to Sh1.3 billion ($13 million) in 2017 from Sh2.8 billion the previous year.
Uganda ended its lull last year with an arms stockpile worth Sh1.8 billion, a departure from 2016 when it made no purchase.
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