A donation of USD 7 million by the Japanese government to IOM for
programmes in Kenya's Rift Valley will go a long way to promoting
recovery and peace in a region devastated by conflict a year ago.

More than 500,000 people were displaced in the violence that
followed the 2007 general elections in Kenya, with over 1,000 lives
lost and tens of thousands of homes and livelihoods destroyed.
Kenya's Rift Valley region was among the worst hit by the violence
which also worsened a food crisis in the country as many displaced
families came from grain basket areas.

Many of those returning to their homes post-conflict have been
struggling to recover without homes or livelihoods. Forced to
establish temporary shelters close to their former homes despite
on-going concerns over security and ethnic tensions, the homeless
have been living under difficult circumstances. 

The Japanese-funded IOM programme is part of a response to
Kenyan government calls to help with the provision of 40,000 new
homes for the displaced and to address some of the root-causes of
the post-election violence. It will focus on four districts in
Kenya's North Rift Valley particularly badly hit by violence and
displacement and will provide 8,000 low-cost semi-permanent
shelters.

IOM will also provide livelihood options for 1,200 families and
will work to promote peace and reconciliation between communities
by establishing four peace centres among communities identified as
having already begun a healing process. To be built on public land
and belonging to the community, the peace centres will be used for
community meetings, youth and other activities designed to ensure
peace and reconciliation.

In addition, partnership grants will be made available to local
non-governmental and community-based organizations to undertake
peace building activities including outreach to schools and youth
mobilization.

The programme will directly assist 56,000 people with a wider
reach of more than 200,000.

Speaking today in Nairobi after signing an agreement on the
funding with Japan's Ambassador to Kenya, Shigeo Iwatani, IOM's
Regional Representative for East and Central Africa, Ashraf El
Nour, said: "These programmes, which will not only improve the
lives of tens of thousands of people, represent a major step
forward in finding durable solutions for the effective
reintegration and resettlement of displaced people. They will also
help address the food crisis in Kenya by helping communities to
again work the land and grow food."

For further information, please contact:

Jerotich Seii Houlding

IOM Nairobi

Tel: +254 20 4444 167

E-mail: "mailto:jseiihoulding@iom.int">jseiihoulding@iom.int

or

Rose Ogola

IOM Nairobi

E-mail: "mailto:rogola@iom.int">rogola@iom.int