Challenges Facing the Police and Private Security in the Provision of Security Services in Nairobi City County, Kenya

Abstract

Over the course of the last 20 years, there has been an increase in the number of private security officers deployed to guard key installations and perform quasi-police functions in Kenya cities, more so in Nairobi. This has raised the curiosity of criminologists and criminal justice experts, who now want to learn more about the ways in which law enforcement and private security agencies work together to reduce crime. This study investigated the challenges that face the police and private security in the provision of security in Nairobi City County, Kenya. The study was underpinned in the systems theory and the differential association theory. The study used mixed methods approach in data collection and to this end, both quantitative and qualitative techniques were combined in data collection. The survey collected data from 241 respondents being 117 law enforcement personnel and 124 private security personnel in Nairobi County. The study collected both primary and secondary data and interview schedules and questionnaires were used to collect data from respondents. The city of Nairobi was chosen as the study area because of the substantial distribution of both public and private security service providers there. Quantitative data for the study was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics with the help of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 28.0 for windows. Study findings revealed that the challenges faced by police and private security in the provision of security services in Nairobi County included lack of manpower; a lack of resources; tribalism; lack of centralization of command; and a lack of adequate training with a combined coefficient of determination (R 2 ) of 0.71). findings of this study stretched the fronters of knowledge and significantly contributed to existing body of knowledge on the police-private security partnership in the provision of security services not only in Nairobi County but in Kenya and beyond. Keywords: Challenges, Police, Private Security, Security Provision DOI: 10.7176/JLPG/127-05 Publication date: December 31 st 2022