Exploring Ruto’s Ksh.52 Billion Bag Of Goodies From America
President William Ruto will come back to Kenya after his significant trip to the United States, bringing along a plethora of valuable benefits worth billions of shillings.
During his visit, Ruto and President Joe Biden inked several agreements across various governmental and private domains.
Throughout the four-day State Visit, Kenya has garnered substantial financial and investment rewards, alongside a historic milestone—being designated as the first sub-Saharan African nation to attain major non-NATO ally status with the United States.
The goodie bag
When Ruto arrives home this weekend, he’ll bring along a significant sum of over Ksh.52 billion ($395.15M) of invaluable resources.
These funds stem from commitments made by various U.S. state departments and agencies to Kenya, aimed at bolstering diverse development endeavors.
According to announcements from The White House, these collaborations are built upon the longstanding 60-year relationship between the two nations.
The financial assistance from the U.S. to Kenya will aid the country across multiple sectors, including Democracy, Human Rights, Governance; Health Initiatives; People-to-People Connections; Climate Solutions; Trade and Investment; Debt Management, Development, and Sustainable Finance; Digital Innovation and Technology Cooperation; and Peace and Security Initiatives.
A substantial portion, approximately Ksh.5.3 billion ($40 million), has been designated to support democracy, human rights, and governance efforts in Kenya, with an additional allocation of Ksh.93 million ($700,000) earmarked for implementing the Public Benefits Organization Act.
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has disclosed an additional Ksh.173 million ($1.3 million) to augment the youth empowerment initiative, focused on enhancing political engagement at the subnational level, alongside Ksh.80 million ($600,000) earmarked for advancing disability inclusion efforts.
Additionally, the United States pledges to bolster Kenya’s anti-corruption endeavors with Ksh.66 million ($500,000) allocated for a fresh Fiscal Integrity Program, and another Ksh.66 million ($500,000) designated to amplify the scope and efficacy of anti-corruption advocacy.
In a bid to aid the Government of Kenya in its anti-corruption crusade, the Administration commits Ksh.33 million ($250,000) through the Global Accountability Program and Ksh.40 million ($300,000) to bolster Kenya’s proposed Whistleblower Protection legislation, aimed at fortifying the nation’s anti-corruption legal framework. Furthermore, USAID has disbursed Ksh.358 million ($2.7 million) to enhance the enforcement of policies and laws addressing fraud, waste, and abuse in public service delivery to Kenyan citizens, according to the White House statement.
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Moreover, the U.S. announces a fresh partnership worth Ksh.929 million ($7 million) to promote and reinforce the modernization and professionalization of Kenya’s National Police Service.
The United States of America also plans to allocate Ksh.650 million ($4.9 million) in new funding for Kenya and other East African nations to enhance cooperation and coordination in combating criminal networks and ensuring accountability for criminals.
The goodie bag will also cover reforms in Kenya’s electoral system with Ksh.199 million ($1.5 million) allocated to bolster the electoral process by empowering the election commission, political parties, and campaign finance.
In the realm of healthcare, America will assist Kenya in constructing the digital superhighway to facilitate comprehensive healthcare delivery. An amount of Ksh.4.1 billion ($31 million) will be designated to develop and implement digital health solutions to bolster disease programs in Kenya.
Additional investments by the U.S. in Kenya encompass a Ksh.1.3 billion ($10 million) direct loan to Kenyan firm Hewa Tele, along with two rounds of equity investments totaling Ksh.531 million ($4 million) in Kasha Global.
Support for Kenya’s education sector will be provided by the U.S. through a Ksh.66 million ($500,000) allocation to foster the growth of Kenyan students, scientists, researchers, and engineers.
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The White House declared, “USAID aims to allocate Ksh.3.2 billion ($24.5 million) towards the Kenya Primary Literacy Program (KPLP), a fresh nationwide initiative aimed at enhancing early-grade literacy in close collaboration with Kenya’s Ministry of Education.”
An additional Ksh.40 billion ($300,000) is earmarked to promote women’s entrepreneurship and gender equality within Kenya’s energy sector, alongside Ksh.478 million ($3.6 million) dedicated to expediting the connection of residences, businesses, and institutions in the country to cleaner sources of electricity.
Further investments will target hydropower initiatives and the transition to zero-emission vehicles within Kenya.
Kenyan-owned private enterprises are also beneficiaries of this initiative. Notably, a Ksh.66 million ($500,000) technical assistance grant is allocated to Pezesha Africa Limited to develop an exclusive credit scoring model.
Additionally, M-KOPA, an asset financing platform, will receive a Ksh.6.8 billion ($51 million) loan to facilitate smartphone installment plans and cash advances, thus improving accessibility to M-KOPA’s products for low-income consumers.
Exploring Ruto’s Ksh.52 Billion Bag Of Goodies From America