The Kenya government has “deregistered” more than 500 non-governmental organisations (NGO) for allegedly not complying with the law, following the passing of a controversial security bill last week.
In a statement announcing the closing of the NGOs, the government said,
“Some NGOs have been and continue to be used for criminal activities, including as conduits of terrorism financing in Kenya and in the Horn of Africa.”
Although it did not name any groups, 15 of those deregistered were accused of being linked to terrorism. The organisations were identified “in collaboration with security agencies both locally and internationally,” said the government.
Many of the organisations, which are reported to be mostly aid agencies and charities, were closed due to not having submitted financial audit returns.
Executive Director of the governments NGO Coordination BoardFazul Mahamed, said,
"The NGOs with accounting issues can only be allowed to operate if they successfully go through a thorough vetting process. Otherwise, they will remain deregistered indefinitely."
See our earlier post:Kenya passes controversial anti-terror bill (12 December 2014)