On 5–16 May 2025, the IIJ supported Kenyan prosecutors in organising a pioneering counter-terrorism training programme, funded by Global Affairs Canada, which merged international standards with domestic legal frameworks to enhance criminal justice responses to security threats.
The two-week course, led by Kenya’s Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, with contributions from the British High Commission in Kenya and the United States Department of Justice Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training, marked a strategic shift towards sustainable, Kenyan-led legal education.
The Kenyan prosecutors who designed this programme were inspired by their experience as alumni of the IIJ’s Counter-Terrorism Academic Curriculum (CTAC). Through this training, 11 experienced prosecutors delivered a tailored curriculum for 22 peers from across the country, after adapting key skills and lessons learned from the CTAC to Kenya’s unique legal and procedural landscape. The curriculum covered counter-terrorism financing, cyberterrorism, human rights compliance, and interagency collaboration, among other topics. A highlight included a moot court simulation where senior prosecutors served as judges, testing participants’ trial advocacy skills and procedural rigour in counter-terrorism proceedings.
The course integrated interactive methods — quizzes, case studies, and a field visit to the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit’s forensics lab — to enhance practical skills in trial advocacy, evidence handling, and intelligence analysis. Senior prosecutors validated the curriculum, paving the way for its inclusion in Kenya’s official prosecutorial training framework. This programme illustrates how the IIJ’s peer-led approach to capacity-building empowers criminal justice practitioners, reduces reliance on external actors, and strengthens national criminal justice capacity to address terrorism while upholding human rights. Ultimately, the programme highlights the value of multi-institutional cooperation in advancing rule-of-law objectives and regional security.