Kenya Countering Violent Extremism in Prisons Program
Date : August 2023
Between 2020-2023, the Global Center, National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Kenya Prison Service (KPS), and Kenyan Legal Resources Foundation developed, validated, then delivered a Countering Violent Extremism in Prisons (CVE-P) Awareness Raising Course to over 30,000 KPS staff and new recruits at over 130 prisons. Through the training of 80 trainers from prisons across Kenya and a coordinated rollout among all key KPS officials, the program built a system-wide baseline among KPS staff on understanding and awareness of violent extremism in prisons.
Some key program accomplishments include:
- A system-wide awareness of violent extremism in prisons: As of July 2023, the training program reached over 30,000 KPS officers across all stations in Kenya, as well as at KPS Headquarters and the training college, on the prevention, identification, and mitigation of violent extremism in prisons. Approximately 99% of all Kenyan prison officers have received the course.
- Partnership-driven: The CVE-P Awareness-Raising Course has been co-developed by the Global Center, KPS, and NCTC, with support from the Kenyan Legal Resources Foundation. Throughout its pilot and rollout, it consistently integrated feedback from trainers and prison staff to ensure the training is relevant, localized, and nationally owned. According to the Commissioner General of Prisons, the course was the biggest and most successful training program for the KPS to date.
- Creation of national training team: Through a comprehensive identification, training, evaluation, and certification process, the program established a team of 80 Kenyan trainers posted at prison stations in all regions of Kenya. This training team is capable of delivering the course at the Training College and in their stations on an ongoing basis. The training team is also an asset of the KPS that can be called upon in CVE matters and when additional or refresher training is needed.
- Improved coordination between KPS Headquarters and stations: In addition to raising service-wide awareness, the program generated secondary outcomes that improved the functioning of the KPS. Through the comprehensive coordination processes undertaken, the program directly improved information flow between prisoners and prison staff and between prison stations and headquarters, with officers and station heads sharing more information on issues and concerns about violent extremism.