NAIROBI: Kenya Army Commander Lieutenant General David Ketter has signed performance contracts with formation commanders, placing greater emphasis on measurable results, operational readiness and accountability in the use of resources.
The ceremony at Kahawa Garrison in Nairobi was followed by the 2026 Formation Commanders’ Conference, held under the theme “Sharpening the Command: Focused Leadership, Total Readiness”, the Ministry of Defence said on Saturday.
According to the ministry, the contracts are intended to translate the army’s strategic priorities into practical outcomes, align work across commands and strengthen oversight.
Sustaining performance under financial pressure
Ketter urged commanders to take responsibility for results through focused leadership and disciplined implementation.
He praised the army’s performance in the previous financial year, saying it had contributed to the Ministry of Defence receiving a “Very Good” rating in the Public Service Performance Assessment despite budget constraints.
He challenged officers to sustain those standards through operational effectiveness, efficiency, prudent resource management and continuous improvement.
The Ministry of Defence was named the best-performing ministry in the 2024/25 performance contracting evaluation, with President William Ruto presenting the award in June, Citizen Digital reported.
“This recognition affirms the Ministry of Defence’s outstanding performance in advancing Government priorities,” Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya said at the time.
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She credited both military personnel and civilian staff for the achievement.
Performance contracting is used across Kenya’s public service to set institutional targets that are later evaluated. Such assessments measure performance against agreed commitments, rather than providing a comprehensive public assessment of military combat readiness.
Readiness and soldiers’ welfare
The commanders’ conference brought together formation commanders, commandants, branch chiefs and other senior officers to review performance and assess the army’s preparedness.
Participants also examined progress on resolutions adopted at the 2025 conference.
Discussions covered leadership, operational readiness, soldiers’ welfare, discipline, morale, cohesion and the ethical use of resources, according to the ministry.
Officers were tasked with identifying institutional gaps and agreeing on practical measures to improve the army’s response to what the ministry described as “an evolving security environment”.
The ministry did not disclose the specific targets contained in the contracts or publish the resolutions adopted at the conference.
Commitments at home and abroad
The Kenya Army is the largest of the three services within the Kenya Defence Forces, alongside the air force and navy.
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Its personnel remain deployed in Somalia under the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia, supporting operations against al-Shabaab.
Those deployments also include community outreach activities in areas such as Kismayo and Dhobley, according to the Ministry of Defence.
At home, the army supports security operations in parts of northern Kenya and border areas.
Modernisation, stronger capabilities and force readiness were among the priorities identified when the Ministry of Defence presented its 2026/27 budget estimates to Parliament’s defence committee in February.
Vice Chief of the Defence Forces Lieutenant General John Omenda highlighted those priorities during the presentation, the ministry said.
Ketter’s leadership priorities
Ketter was appointed army commander in June 2025, succeeding Lieutenant General David Tarus. He previously served as Assistant Chief of the Defence Forces responsible for personnel and logistics, The Star reported.
The contracts and conference place responsibility on commanders to connect planning with delivery, from managing resources to maintaining discipline and supporting personnel.
With the detailed targets unpublished, the ministry’s statement offers limited scope for assessing the commitments independently. The practical test will be whether commanders can sustain readiness and improve conditions for soldiers within the resources available.
