Minister for Africa Vicky Ford has completed a three-country
visit in East Africa, focused on supporting communities impacted
by drought and building strong economic partnerships.
Minister for Africa , said:
The UK is deepening our ties with our partners across East
Africa.
As the region grapples with one of the worst droughts on record,
the UK is providing vital food assistance to vulnerable
communities in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia and leading the
global effort to support countries on the frontline of climate
change.
“The work of British International Investment across east Africa
will provide honest and reliable finance, boost growth and create
jobs both in the UK and in the region.
I am pleased that there are efforts to make peace in northern
Ethiopia, where the conflict has caused great suffering to many
millions of people. The UK stands ready to support the peace
efforts.
And we are working with our partners in East Africa to tackle
some of the key challenges in the region today: security and
stability; severe humanitarian crises; getting more girls into
school; and increasing access to COVID-19 vaccines.
While in Kenya, the Minister announced a £17 million package of
UK funding to support almost a million people across East Africa
affected by extreme weather events driven by climate change.
In Nairobi the Minister held an East Africa launch of the new
British International Investment (BII) at an event alongside the
Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Ukur Yatani, and a host of
business leaders. BII confirmed a new £37 million investment into
Equity Bank to boost small business growth in Kenya at the event.
The Minister also announced that the UK will provide expert
analysis and advice on how to boost green manufacturing jobs in
Kenya (worth £400,000) and confirmed that UK engineering firm
Atkins has been appointed to design Nairobi’s new Central Train
Station, a flagship project to regenerate Nairobi’s Central
Business District.
In Uganda, the Minister visited the Onwards and Upwards school in
Wakiso district, where she met with students who spoke about the
impact two years of school closures have had on them and their
aspirations for the future.
The Minister also saw first-hand collaboration between the UK and
Uganda at the Uganda Virus Research Institute, where our two
countries have collaborated on HIV, Ebola and more recently
Covid-19.
Ford announced a new agreement with the Government of Uganda for
the UK to donate a further one million doses of the AstraZeneca
vaccine in the coming months, following 300,000 AstraZeneca
vaccine doses donated last year.
The UVRI connections with the UK have existed since its founding
in 1936 and UVRI now receives funding from the UK Government
through the Medical Research Council and the UK Research
Institute.
While in Ethiopia, Minister Ford met with Prime Minister Abiy and
State Minister Redwan to call for peace in the north and for the
government to engage with the African Union-led mediation efforts
and express the UK’s readiness to support a peace process.
To meet some of the immediate need, the Minister announced new
health and education support for people living in
conflict-affected areas (worth £5m), which will see 30,000
children who were forced out of school by conflict back into the
classroom.
The Minister also announced a further £4.5m of funding, which
will go to local women’s organisations in Tigray to provide vital
support to survivors of gender-based violence, to peacebuilding
work in the Somali region and to building the capacity of the
Ethiopian Human Rights Commission.
Minister Ford also met with Finance Minister Shide to discuss UK
support for opening up Ethiopia’s economy to private investment
for low carbon infrastructure.
