By Ollus Ndomu
The U.S. government has frozen over $13 million in funding for Kenya’s security mission in Haiti following President Donald Trump’s 90-day foreign aid pause.
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric confirmed Tuesday that the U.S. had committed $15 million to the mission’s trust fund, but only $1.7 million had been spent before the freeze. “We received an official notification from the U.S. asking for an immediate stop work order on their contribution,” he said.
The decision caught Kenyan officials off guard. Kenya is leading the U.N.-backed multinational mission aimed at stabilizing Haiti, which is plagued by gang violence.
While approved by the U.N. Security Council, the mission is not a formal U.N. operation and depends on voluntary contributions.
It remains unclear how the funding freeze will impact the mission’s deployment and operations.
