Impact of the Provision of Humanitarian Aid Transit Corridors on National Security: the Case of Kenya, 1989-2005

Abstract

Discourses on humanitarian aid offered to mitigate the effects of man-made disasters have often been compartmentalised within two perspectives: those that support the rationale for such aid and those critical of the impact of such aid on end users during humanitarian emergencies. While these discourses provide useful insights into this component of international relations, the two perspectives have focused less on the national security impact of such aid as it moves along part of the logistics chain external to the theatre of humanitarian emergencies. In this dissertation, the historical development of the humanitarian aid business within the context of the international system is reviewed and the implications that the movement of international humanitarian aid have on national security of developing countries with specific reference to Kenya are assessed. The outcome of the study shows that for as long as the actors involved in humanitarian aid business are politically-oriented by virtue of their attributes or association, their work in developing countries portend some impact but of less substantive significance on the national security of regional states w'ithin the neighbourhood of the areas experiencing humanitarian challenges.