Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government how much financial support they provide to the BRICS/Wasafiri countering violent extremism programme in Kenya; and what assessment they have made of (1) the programme’s effect on Al-Shabaab, (2) its effect on the national security of the UK and Kenya respectively, and (3) its value for money in the context of UK overseas commitments.

​Between November 2015 and August 2018, through the Conflict, Security and Stability Fund we invested £7.5m in the Building Resilience Civil Society (BRICS) programme in East Africa. The programme has improved our understanding of the drivers of violent extremism in East Africa and, through civil society organisations, supported governments in the region to strengthen their response to violent extremism. In Kenya, the programme has helped the development of county action plans to tackle violent extremism in four counties, including in relation to Al-Shabaab. The UK-Kenya Security Compact, signed during the Prime Minister's visit in August, includes a commitment to roll out these action plans to more counties. The programme also provided grants to civil society organisations working with young people at risk of radicalisation or recruitment by violent extremist groups. In June, our BRICS programme received an ‘A’ for outcome and was commended for its focus on learning and responsive programming. The Annual Review summary will be published in due course.