NAIROBI - Kenya is navigating a severe escalation in cyber threats, with the nation's digital infrastructure enduring a 146% increase in attacks in the year leading up to June 2025, according to the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA). This unprecedented surge, which saw 8.6 billion threats detected, up from 3.5 billion the previous year, places the country's burgeoning digital economy, valued at 53% of its GDP in 2024, under significant strain. In response, Kenya is intensifying its collaboration with Israel, a global cybersecurity powerhouse, to adopt strategies that have fortified the Middle Eastern nation against similar digital assaults.

The threat landscape is becoming increasingly complex and costly. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, the CA's National Kenya Computer Incident Response Team – Coordination Centre (KE-CIRT/CC) detected over 2.5 billion cyber threat events, a 201.7% jump from the last quarter of 2024. A subsequent report for the second quarter (April-June 2025) recorded a staggering 4.5 billion threats. These attacks range from Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) and malware campaigns to sophisticated, AI-powered phishing scams targeting critical sectors like finance, healthcare, and government services. The economic toll is substantial, with cybercrime costing Kenya an estimated KES 10.7 billion ($83 million) in 2023.

The Israeli Blueprint: A National Priority

Facing this digital onslaught, Kenya is looking to Israel's highly effective cybersecurity model for actionable insights. Israel's approach is built on the foundational principle of treating cybersecurity as a national security imperative, deeply integrated into economic and educational policy. This strategy is orchestrated by the Israel National Cyber Directorate (INCD), a unified agency responsible for defending all aspects of the civilian cyberspace, from policy formulation to operational defence. A key pillar of Israel's success is its cultivation of a robust ecosystem that fosters seamless collaboration between government, the military, academia, and the private sector. This public-private partnership (PPP) model has been instrumental in creating a culture of innovation and rapid response. In 2024, Israeli cybersecurity start-ups attracted nearly 40% of all global private cyber funding, a testament to the model's success.

Kenya-Israel Collaboration Takes Centre Stage

The partnership between the two nations is becoming more concrete. During a visit by President William Ruto to Israel in 2023, technology and cybersecurity were central to bilateral discussions. A significant outcome of this collaboration is the "Cyber-Dome" initiative, a project led by the INCD and Kenya's Communications Authority. This initiative aims to establish a national defence system to protect Kenya's communication networks and critical infrastructure, drawing on Israeli expertise and technology. On Tuesday, October 28, 2025 (EAT), Kenya's Cabinet Secretary for Information, Communications and the Digital Economy, William Kabogo, met with Israeli Ambassador H.E. Gideon Behar to further solidify this partnership. Discussions focused on technology transfer, joint research, and digital skilling, with an emphasis on co-developing and deploying Israeli-grade defence tools for national projects like the Konza Technopolis.

Kenya's Evolving National Strategy

Kenya is not merely importing solutions but is actively refining its own strategic framework. The government launched its National Cybersecurity Strategy 2022-2027, which is now being updated with a new draft for 2025-2029. The revised strategy introduces new pillars focused on streamlined incident response management and the secure integration of emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI). The nine key pillars of the 2025-2029 draft strategy include:

• A robust policy, legal, and regulatory framework
• Enhanced cybersecurity governance
• Protection of Critical Information Infrastructure (CII)
• Capacity and capabilities building
• Mitigation of cybercrimes and risks
• Enhanced incident detection, prevention, and response
• Constructive use of new and emerging technologies
• Fostering public-private partnerships
• Promoting international cooperation and collaboration

This strategy acknowledges the critical need for a skilled workforce, aiming to train 10,000 cybersecurity professionals. However, the country faces a significant skills gap, with an estimated need for 40,000 to 50,000 professionals against a current certified pool of only 1,700.

Lessons and the Path Forward

The core lesson from the Israeli experience is the power of a unified, national approach where cybersecurity is a shared responsibility. Israel's model of nurturing talent from an early age, fostering a vibrant start-up culture through government and venture capital support, and ensuring constant information sharing between sectors provides a compelling roadmap. For Kenya, the challenge lies in adapting these principles to its unique context. While the government is laying the groundwork with its updated strategy and international partnerships, successful implementation will depend on bridging the significant skills gap and fostering genuine trust between public and private entities to enable effective information sharing. The success of the Cyber-Dome initiative and other collaborative efforts will be a critical test of this strategic pivot. As Cabinet Secretary Kabogo noted, building local capacity is paramount for Kenya to realize its ambition of becoming the "Silicon Savannah" of Africa—a dream that hinges on a secure and resilient digital foundation.