Inspector General of the National Police Service Douglas Kanja was spotted wearing a unique lapel button on his police regalia.
The lapel button is white, with the flag of Africa at the centre and the words 'AFRIPOL' at the bottom. This is the first time the IG was spotted wearing the button, prompting Kenyans.co.ke to find out why and what it means.
While speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, Police Spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga confirmed that the lapel button is handed to the President of the African Union Mechanism for Police Cooperation (AFRIPOL).
Kanja is the current president of the continental body established under the African Union (AU) to enhance cooperation among African police agencies in combating transnational organised crime and cybercrime across Africa.
The Inspector General is the current President of AFRIPOL, and according to Nyaga, Kanja should always wear the lapel button.
Kanja was appointed as the President in October 2024, following his confirmation as IG on September 19, 2024.
AFRIPOL has a General Assembly, which serves as the supreme decision-making body and is composed of police chiefs from all AU Member States. It also has an Executive Board that oversees operations and the implementation of policies, along with a Secretariat led by an Executive Director based in Algiers.
His first official engagement in this role was chairing the 12th AFRIPOL Steering Committee Meeting held from October 29 to 30, 2024, at its headquarters in Algiers, Algeria.
Subsequently, on November 28, 2024, he presided over an Extraordinary General Assembly session, which focused on structural and operational reforms to enhance AFRIPOL’s capacity to combat transnational organised crimes, and cybercrime across the continent.
As President of the AFRIPOL General Assembly, Kanja leads the organisation's highest decision-making body, overseeing strategic direction and fostering collaboration among African Union member states to strengthen continental security.
“Kanja took over from the previous IG of Police, Japhet Koome,” Nyaga told Kenyans.co.ke in an interview.
Kanja is expected to step down from the post in October 2026, aligning with the stipulated two-year non-renewable term. In case Kanja leaves his Inspector General of Police post before then, the newly appointed IG will take over the position granted to Kenya.
