Conflict, illicit arms and the Arms Trade Treaty in East Africa

The East Africa region faces a range of cross-border security challenges that are exacerbated by the proliferation and misuse of illicit arms, in particular small arms and light weapons. However, of the 15 Member States of the Regional Centre on Small Arms (RECSA) in East Africa, currently only two are ATT States Parties, five are Signatories to the Treaty, and eight have yet to join. This is a relatively low up-take of the ATT, compared to other African regions, such as West and Southern Africa. 

This briefing builds on a background paper presented at the ninth meeting of the ATT Expert Group, held in Mombasa, Kenya on 29-30 July 2025. The meeting was organised by Saferworld, the Security Research and Information Centre (SRIC) and RECSA, thanks to funding from the Government of Canada.

The briefing incorporates some of the key discussion points raised during the meeting, in the context of three main themes: 

• Regional conflict dynamics and the impact of conflict and insecurity on East African states and communities; 
• The mechanisms by which arms proliferation occurs in the region; and,
• How ATT accession and implementation can help East African states in their efforts to prevent or reduce the impact of illicit arms proliferation and misuse in East Africa. 

Read the briefing here.  
 
Read more of our ATT Expert Group briefing series. 
 
Read more about our work on the Arms Trade Treaty.