The Spider Defence System—a high-tech missile defence system—that Kenya plans to buy from Israel will cost at least Sh4 billion, underscoring the high cost of modernising the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF).
Disclosures by the National Assembly Committee on Budget and Appropriations show that the Treasury has allocated Sh3 billion to top up a Sh1 billion loan that Kenya will tap from Tel Aviv to acquire the high-tech defence system.
Earlier, the Treasury disclosed plans to tap a Sh1 billion loan from Tel Aviv and acquire the high-tech system from renowned Israeli defence technology company Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Limited. "Additional Sh3 billion for procurement of Reinforced Battery Missile Missile System (Spider Air Defence System)," the Ministry of Defence says in a request for increased budgetary allocation.
Missile defence systems detect, intercept, and destroy attacking missiles, such as intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Israel is one of the most renowned countries in technology alongside the US, Russia, United Kingdom, France, China, and India.
There have been growing security concerns globally in the wake of the Middle East conflict. Additionally, Kenya is also seeking to bolster the security apparatus given the threat posed by the Al-Shabaab militants and neighbouring countries caught up in armed conflicts.
The terms of the loan for the missile system remain undisclosed. However, Kenya has for years maintained strong ties with Tel Aviv, relations that have in the past seen Kenya take a hit from terrorists, most notably the Kikambala attacks in 2002.
The attacks that targeted the Israel-owned Paradise Hotel and the Arkia Israeli Airlines led to the deaths of 15 people.
Rafael Advanced Defence Systems Limited also supplies missiles to the US, European Union forces, the United Kingdom, and members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). Last month, the US designated Kenya as a major non-NATO ally, elevating its regional and international security role.
Like most other countries, given their sensitive nature, Kenya does not make public disclosures about military acquisitions.
However, the Swedish-based Stockholm International Peace Research Institute reveals some of the information, including the purchase of helicopters, jet fighters, military tanks, guns, and other arms. KDF is also in line to get 16 helicopters, including eight Hueys and eight MD-500s from the US, in a deal signed between the two governments last month.
