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Kenya has been handed the lead role in fighting small arms and light weapons within the Great Lakes region and the Horn of Africa.

The new role in the Regional Centre on Small Arms and Light Weapons (RECSA) now expands the country’s scope of responsibilities in the efforts to stop illicit arms trade and foster sustainable peace and security in the region by keeping such arms out of the hands of criminals and terrorists.

Kenya takes over the chairmanship of the RECSA following a unanimous endorsement from the representatives of the organization’s 15 member states.

There are 15 RECSA member states in the Great Lakes Region and the Horn of Africa signatory to the Nairobi Declaration and Nairobi Protocol.

They are Burundi, Central Africa Republic, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania.

According to Interior PS Raymond Omollo (pictured) who represented Kenya during a meeting of the Council of Members in Kinshasha, Kenya was ready to advance RECSA’s agenda, key among them ending violent conflicts, terrorism, organised crimes and humanitarian crises aggravated by small arms.