KENYA DONATES MAIZE TO ZIM newsdzeZimbabweNewsdzeZimbabwe

KENYA DONATES MAIZE TO ZIM newsdzeZimbabweNewsdzeZimbabwe


Kenya has pledged to donate US$1 million worth of maize to Zimbabwe, which will be delivered over the next few weeks to complement the government’s drought mitigation efforts in the face of prolonged El NiƱo-induced drought.

In his remarks during the signing of eight memorandums of understanding between Kenya and Zimbabwe within the framework of the Fourth Zimbabwe-Kenya Joint Standing Committee on Cooperation, at the State House in Bulawayo yesterday, President William Ruto called on the international community to respond to the problem. State of Disaster Declaration in Zimbabwe.

ā€œThe impacts of climate change threaten lives and livelihoods globally, especially on the African continent. We are now increasingly witnessing devastating climate events such as droughts and floods that are increasing in frequency and intensity,ā€ he said.

ā€œIt is essential that all countries, especially the developed world, fulfill their obligations and commitments under the Paris Agreement and other multilateral environmental agreements.ā€

President Ruto appealed to the community of nations to unite efforts to combat climate change and promote sustainable management of natural resources and the ecosystem.

ā€œIn this regard, I would like to express Kenyaā€™s solidarity with Zimbabwe in the face of the protracted El NiƱo-induced drought that has left a severe food and humanitarian crisis in the southern African region.

ā€œWe call on the international community to respond to your declaration of a state of disaster in Zimbabwe following the El NiƱo-induced drought. For its part, Kenya is committed to providing food items worth US$1 million, especially maize, to the people of Zimbabwe in the next few weeks.

Zimbabwe requires more than US$2 billion for the various interventions envisaged within the national response.

The current agricultural season, 2023 to 2024, did not perform according to expectations due to drought caused by the El NiƱo phenomenon. As a result, more than 80% of the country received less than normal rainfall.

The country has allocated 1,728,897 hectares to the cultivation of maize and other grains, which would normally have ensured a bumper harvest. The situation, characterized by poor rainfall, has been further exacerbated by a fall armyworm outbreak across the country.

President Ruto also criticized Western countries for imposing illegal sanctions on Zimbabwe and called for their immediate lifting.

ā€œYour Excellency, we share a strong commitment to multilateralism and a rules-based multilateral system. For this reason, we have always maintained a principled position against unilateral coercive measures.ā€

ā€œKenya considers the economic sanctions imposed on Zimbabwe to be unlawful. We will continue to support the call for the immediate and unconditional lifting of these unlawful sanctions.

President Ruto also thanked the Government of Zimbabwe for giving his country 100 tons of medical oxygen in 2022 at the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.

ā€œYour gift is evidence of the true spirit of African solidarity that has inspired the Africa Liberation Movement. Most importantly, the fact that Zimbabwe has been able to develop indigenous capacity to produce high-quality medical oxygen indicates the enormous innovative potential in Africa, which we need to nurture and enhance.

President Ruto also wished President Mnangagwa success when he assumes the presidency of the Southern African Development Community in August when the country hosts the regional bloc’s summit in Harare.

ā€œYour Excellency, I also know that you will be hosting the SADC Summit in Zimbabwe in August this year and will assume the Chairmanship of the Summit. I wish you at this first opportunity a very successful SADC Summit and your presidency.

ā€œI have been appointed Champion of Institutional Reforms of the African Union during the 37th Ordinary Session of Heads of State and Government. I ask for your support as we strive to restructure the organs of the African Union, finalize the division of labor between the organs of the African Union Commission, the Specialized Agencies and the Regional Economic Communities, and streamline the agenda of the Assembly to cover Strategic issues.

President Ruto also asked Zimbabwe to visit Kenya in its bid to chair the African Union Commission between 2025 and 2028.

This came after the Executive Council of the African Union, on March 15, unanimously adopted the resolution stipulating that the East African region should present candidates for the presidency of the African Union.

Earlier, during the banquet held in honor of President Ruto on Friday evening at the State House in Bulawayo, President Mnangagwa thanked his Kenyan counterpart for the maize donation.

ā€œOver the past four decades, Zimbabwe and Kenya have fostered synergies between different sectors of the economy. I was briefing my younger brother (President Ruto) on the drought situation here, and by the way, they donā€™t have drought in Kenya because they are close to the equator.

ā€œWhen I told my dear brother that we were suffering from drought, he donated 30,000 tons of maize to Zimbabwe. Thank you, this is what brothers do for each other.

Early this month, President Mnangagwa declared the drought a state of disaster, saying adequate resources would be mobilized and redirected towards enhancing national food security, including through supplementary grain imports as part of mitigation measures.

Humanitarian agencies, including the World Food Programme, which fed 270,000 people between January and March in four regions, described the hunger situation as “dire” and called on donors to provide more aid. Sunday news




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