President William Ruto has announced that the Kenya-Somalia border will officially reopen in April this year, following years of deliberations and thorough security assessments.<\/p>\n
Speaking during the NYOTA Capital Disbursement event at Mandera Stadium on Thursday, the President said he will personally officiate the reopening of the border, which was closed in 2011 amid a series of sustained Al-Shabaab insurgencies in the neighbouring region under the then administration of President Mwai Kibaki.<\/p>\n
To fast-track the process and safeguard the gains made by a multi-agency security team patrolling the border, Ruto announced that Kenya will double the number of police officers deployed to ensure safety.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot trade with closed borders. For that reason, I will be returning here in April to officially open the border post linking Kenya and Somalia,\u201d Ruto said.<\/p>\n
President William Ruto and Deputy Kithure Kindiki arrive in Mandera ahead of the NYOTA Capital Disbursement at Mandera Stadium on February 12, 2026.<\/p>\n
PCS<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cWe will deploy adequate security to ensure that criminals and insurgent groups do not infiltrate, while giving traders from both regions the freedom to operate. Leave the insurgents to us; we will deal with them.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Head of State also urged local residents and regional leaders to collaborate with the government by providing timely intelligence to help dismantle any Al-Shabaab networks that might attempt to exploit the border reopening.<\/p>\n
The Kenya-Somalia border was officially closed in October 2011 after repeated attacks by Al-Shabaab, who have been waging an insurgency against Somalia\u2019s federal government in Mogadishu for over 15 years.<\/p>\n