Exchange of Notes for Grant Aid (Food Aid) for the Republic of Kenya

August 24, 2009
Japanese

The Government of Japan has decided to extend grant aid (food aid) of 670 million JPY to the Republic of Kenya, which has vulnerable groups such as internally displaced persons (IDP), women, and children facing chronic food shortage caused by drought, poverty, and global rises in prices of fertilizer and fuel. Notes to this effect were exchanged on August 24 (Mon) (local time: same day) in Nairobi (capital of Kenya) between Mr. Shigeo Iwatani, Ambassador of Japan to Kenya, and Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance of Kenya.
Food production in Kenya in 2008 has dropped to approximately eighty percent of what it was in 2007, due to IDP resulting from the uprising and disorder after the Presidential election at the end of 2007, two years of continual drought, and rises in prices of fertilizer and fuel. The price of corn, a staple food, has risen to approximately twice the average, causing a chronic food shortage. This grant aid provides the necessary funds to procure corn, one of the principal foods in Kenya, to help alleviate the serious food shortage.
This food aid is part of Japan's commitment to Africa announced at the Fourth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD IV) held May 2008 to strengthen cooperation towards efforts in the agricultural and food provision sectors of African countries.

(Reference) The Republic of Kenya is located in Eastern Africa, covers a land area of 580,000 square kilometers, has a population of 37.5 million people (as of 2008), and a Gross National Income (GNI) per capita of 770 USD (as of 2008).

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