Exchange Notes signing on the Blue Growth Initiative Project to be carried out in Kenya, Comoros, Seychelles, Madagascar and Mauritius

2019/8/22
On Thursday, 22nd August, 2019 in Nairobi, H.E. Ambassador Ryoichi Horie and Dr. Gabriel Rugalema, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations Representative in the Republic of Kenya signed the Exchange Notes (E/N) for a grant assistance titled “Grant Signing Ceremony for the Project for Enhancing Livelihoods, Food Security and Maritime Safety through Increased Resilience of Fishing Communities Dependent on Coral Reef Fisheries in the African Coastal Countries of the Indian Ocean”.

The JPY 475 million (approximately USD 4.4 million) project funded by the Government of Japan is expected to run for three years (from 2019 to 2022) and is estimated to have 30,000 direct beneficiaries who include small-scale fishermen and other fisheries professionals in Kenya, Comoros, Seychelles, Madagascar and Mauritius.

It is also expected the project will allow for improved management of coral reef fisheries both for restoration and protection as well as for income generation; improved fisheries value chains and access to markets; reduction of illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing; improved maritime safety and enhanced and shared knowledge on the improved management of coral reef fisheries contributing to scaling up interventions.

In his speech, Dr. Rugalema stated that Kenya is the first country in the world to organize a Blue Economy Conference and that the grant by the Government of Japan is a great boost to the efforts of the Kenyan Government for the Blue Economy’s contribution to the larger economy.

Ambassador Horie reiterated this fact by stating that the Blue Economy has the potential to greatly accelerate economic development along the entire Indian Ocean shoreline of the African continent and beyond. In this regard, he encouraged Kenya to take full advantage of the huge potential of this sector.

Japan’s contribution to the Blue Economy is a direct outcome of the Prime Minister Abe’s statement on “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” in Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) VI held in Nairobi. This project is also closely aligned to H.E. President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Big4 Agenda in regards to food security. Furthermore, it is also in line with the theme of the upcoming TICAD 7 Meeting held on 28 to 30 August 2019 which is “Advancing Africa’s development through people, technology and innovation”.
 
        
 H.E. Ambassador Ryoichi Horie (right) and Dr. Gabriel Rugalema (middle) signing the Exchange Notes for “The Project for Enhancing
Livelihoods, Food Security and Maritime Safety through Increased Resilience of Fishing Communities Dependent on Coral Reef Fisheries in
the African Coastal Countries of the Indian Ocean"