New Delhi, May 13 (IANS) Kenya, which is suffering due to piracy emanating in Somalia with which it shares a 680-km long, porous border in east Africa, is keen on greater regional cooperation with India, says a senior strategic affairs expert.
"Kenya recognises the advantages of a common approach to the Indian Ocean region. The security aspect has made it a more immediate and important issue for us," said Muiruri Kimani, senior researcher at the Nairobi-based Institute of Security Studies.
Piracy has not only disrupted the sea traffic in the region, but Kenya is also bearing the brunt of increased security and rising prices as millions of dollars of pirates' ransom is being laundered into Kenya, he said.
"As a neighbour to Somalia, Kenya is closely affected by piracy in the region. We have a large Somali population, the border is porous and most of the negotiations for the release of hijacked ships take place from Kenya. All these impact our security," said Kimani.
Kenya is keenly interested in strengthening the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IOR-ARC) as the region faces many common challenges.
Security has emerged as the most recent common challenge due to rise in piracy, said the Kenyan strategist, who was in New Delhi to attend a conference on revitalising the Indian Ocean Rim Association. India is to take over as the chair of the IOR-ARC later this year.
Kenya and India have good bilateral relations and Kenya is keen to collaborate with India to build greater regional cooperation, Kimani said.
There is need for a common approach to security of the region and the Indian Ocean Rim Association can be the appropriate forum to take up such issues, for piracy is hurting everyone, according to Kimani.
Higher insurance premiums for shipping are pushing up transportation costs. Cargo ships are taking longer routes to avoid the pirate-infested areas.
According to some estimates, ships going from Mombasa to Mumbai now take up to 18 days instead of the 12 days it used to take earlier. Dubai to Mombasa takes 12 days instead of the earlier seven.
"Kenya faces greater problems from piracy as most embassies are located in Nairobi. The negotiators base themselves in Kenya to be closer to the pirates' area of operation. Ransom amounts are negotiated and the money is usually dropped off in isolated places or in the sea where the pirates can reach it. The aircraft that takes the ransom money for delivery is usually hired in Kenya," Kimani told IANS.
"The ransom money collected by the pirates has to be put in use. There are several questions being asked - how are the huge sums of money in the hands of the pirates laundered. Two years ago, the Central Bank in Kenya had said that there were more dollars floating around in the economy than it could account for. There are strong rumours that the sharp rise in property values is due to an inflow of piracy money," said the security expert.
Petrol and kerosene prices have been increasing and at times, there are shortages. The cost of business in Kenya has gone up. Insurance premiums are very high and these costs are passed on to consumers.
The threat of pirates in the waters stretching in a wide swathe from the Somali coastline is preventing cruise-liners from calling at Kenyan ports. Kenya's tourism industry has taken a major hit, with the cruise ships diverting from the unsafe waters. The fisheries industry has also been impacted as it has become risky for the fishermen to go out to sea.