President William Ruto, on Monday, April 3, initiated a plan to purchase Ksh32 billion from the Belarus government.
During the meeting attended by Belarus Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik, among other key officials, the President praised Belarus and further explained why his government was in search of tractors.
According to Ruto, at least 25 per cent of the world’s population will be in Africa by 2050, thus the most skilled and innovative global workforce is and will continue to be in the continent.
“With 65 per cent of the world’s uncultivated land, Africa is home to the globe’s agriculture,” Ruto revealed why the need for such expensive machinery.
He further revealed a need for the machinery in Kenya as it was the gateway to Africa.
“This is where the tractors from Belarus have a future,” he stated.
Ruto further announced that Kenya would continue working with Belarus on areas of mutual interest, including technology and investment.
The deal was first revealed on March 14, when it was announced that the government would buy tractors, high-speed propelled forage harvesters, centre pivots and tipping lorries.
While it was met with uproar from Kenyans, the Head of State remained unbowed as he met Belarus delegate at State House, Nairobi.
The deal, which will be handled by the government-owned Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC), caused uproar for various reasons.
First, due to Belarus' close working ties with Russia, sanctioned by Kenya’s biggest trading partners, including the United States and the European Union bloc.
Kenyans also worried that the deal would sink the country further into debt since the purchase would be a government-to-government agreement, meaning that the whole deal drafted by AFC would be funded through a concessional loan.
Government entities who will benefit from the multi-billion worth machinery include; the Kenya Prison Service, National Youth Service, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation and the Agricultural Development Corporation.
