KENYA, IFAD DEEPEN PARTNERSHIP TO ADVANCE AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION AND FOOD SECURITY
KENYA, IFAD DEEPEN PARTNERSHIP TO ADVANCE AGRICULTURAL TRANSFORMATION AND FOOD SECURITY
H.E. Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, Dr. Musalia Mudavadi, today received Letters of Credence of Mr. Matteo Marchisio, incoming Country Director of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), at the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Headquarters.
While lauding IFAD’s transformative engagement in the country, the Prime CS called for a stronger technical assistance and capacity enhancement initiatives to empower local institutions and rural communities in effectively implementing IFAD’s projects on the ground. Empowering these actors with the necessary skills and resources is crucial for ensuring the sustainability and success of the initiatives.
“Our partnership with IFAD has translated into tangible benefits for our farmers, women and young people. We look forward to strengthening technical assistance, agricultural financing and collaboration with TVET institutions to promote skills development, agribusiness, job creation and sustainable rural livelihoods,” said Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi.
“The attention to the youth and women in IFAD’s programming is a very important measure towards gender and youth mainstreaming, enhancing equity, improving livelihoods and enhancing income generation. It is also a positive step in support of sustainable rural development” He said.
Through initiatives such as the Kenya Livestock Commercialization Project (KeLCoP) and the Kenya Cereal Enhancement Programme–Climate Resilient Agricultural Livelihoods Window (KCEP-CRAL), IFAD continues to empower smallholder farmers and strengthen rural economies in line with Kenya’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), particularly the Agriculture and Food Security pillar.
The CS also welcomed IFAD’s support for Kenya’s dairy sector transformation and small-scale farmer financing, building on the engagement between H.E. President William Ruto and IFAD President Alvaro Lario during the State Visit to Italy in April 2026.
Kenya has progressively increased its contributions to IFAD’s replenishment, from USD 100,000 under IFAD-8 to USD 1 million under IFAD-13, and is expected to review its contribution upwards to USD 3 million under IFAD-14.
Since June 2022, Kenya has hosted IFAD’s Regional Office for East and Southern Africa, reinforcing its position as a regional hub for multilateral cooperation and creating opportunities for investment, employment, knowledge exchange and development partnerships.
ENDS.