Speech by H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta, C.G.H.

, President and Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces of the Republic of Kenya during the AMISOM Troops Contributing Countries Summit on 4th August 2013, at Munyonyo, Uganda Your Excellency President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, host and chairman of the summit, Excellencies, Heads of state and Government, Members of diplomatic corps, Ladies and gentlemen. May I at the onset on behalf of my delegation and myself express our gratitude to the Government and people of the Republic of Uganda for the hospitality extended to us since our arrival at Munyonyo - a picturesque site on the shores of our shared resource of Lake Victoria. I wish to thank your Excellency for hosting this summit at a short notice. This demonstrates your Excellencys personal commitment to the search for peace in Somalia and the region. Excellencies, The intervention by AMISOM, the Somali National Army (SNA) and Ethiopian Forces in Somalia has significantly degraded Al Shabaabs capability to operate and generate revenues freely. Nevertheless, Al Shabaab has continued to stage sporadic attacks in the form of improvised explosive devices and suicide bombings on AMISOM, international organizations and foreign missions. The region, and especially Kenya, has not been spared by these heinous acts of terrorism in which our people have lost their lives and property destroyed. Kenya commends AMISOM, the Somali National Army and Ethiopian Forces for their role in stabilizing Somalia. May I assure your Excellencies of Kenyas unwavering support and commitment to the realization of a stable and peaceful Somalia. To achieve this, my country will continue to cooperate with the Federal Government of Somalia, the African Union, the Troops Contributing Countries (TCC) and the rest of the international community. Excellencies, AMISOMs intervention in Somalia has made it one of the successful peace-keeping operations by Africa for Africa. We call upon the United Nations (UN) and the international community at large to avail adequate funding for AMISOM to enable the mission fulfill its objective of stabilizing Somalia. Any efforts to re-hat AMISOM under the UN peace-keeping operations will clearly render the gains made so far invisible. We therefore, recommend that AMISOM be allowed to operate independently of the UN peace-keeping operation in Somalia. It is also noteworthy that military intervention alone is not adequate to ensure a stable Somalia. It is important that political processes both at local and national levels be urgently attended to. Lip service will not do.

Excellencies, Continued insecurity in some parts of Somalia is of concern to Kenya and the region. This state of affairs is detrimental to the envisaged reconstruction, development of Somalia and the eventual return of the Somali Diaspora. My country hosts more than one million Somali refugees. This is a sizeable number of Somali nationals who have been deprived of the opportunity to make a constructive contribution to their country. It is desirable that efforts are made to facilitate their safe and orderly return to their motherland. A number of Somali nationals who had sought asylum in Kenya as refugees have now returned back to Somalia. Appropriate measures need to be put in place to encourage more to return home and contribute to the social, economic and political development of their country. It is through our concerted efforts that we can restore peace, security, stability and ultimately, hope and prosperity in our region. Excellencies, In conclusion, we recognize the sacrifices made by the Troop Contributing Countries. We appeal to the international community to offer strong support through provision of adequate resources to facilitate effective and efficient operations. Our first, second and third priorities must remain to root out Al Shabaab and fully stabilize the Somali state. There can be no wavering or distraction from that clearly and openly stated objective. Mr Chairman, Excellencies We will remain true to that objective and urge the Somali Federal Government likewise to ensure that it is not seen to lose the focus of fighting Al Shabaab. The Somali Federal Government must deploy all its energies and resources as we have all done in this engagement. This is an imperative from which we cannot walk away. Failure is not an option. We have all made enormous sacrifices towards this course. We are determined that those sacrifices will not be in vain. Mr Chairman, Excellencies I thank you.