United States Ambassador to Kenya Meg Whitman now says that it was wrong for the Kenyan government to accuse the Ford Foundation of sponsoring recent protests.
According to Whitman, the organization has been supporting various critical groups including civil society for many years, which are crucial to the country’s democracy.
The Ambassador said that she made her position known to the government over the allegations and they are currently working towards solving the matter.
She insisted that in the end, people will realise that the Ford Foundation had nothing to do with the Gen Z protests.
“I thought that was wrong. The Ford Foundation has worked in this country for almost 60 years. They support many civil society organizations. Civil society is very important to democracy alongside youth and religious leaders. I think that in the end, people will agree that the Ford Foundation had nothing to do with this.
“Of course, they fund civil organizations, and so do other foundations. I thought it was very inappropriate for the government to go after the Ford Foundation,” Whitman said.
Her remarks come several weeks after Kenya alleged that some of the organisations funded by the Ford Foundation had been at the centre of anti-government protests.
The letter by Foreign Affairs PS Korir Sing'oei said Kenya was concerned that some of the organisations linked to the protest spent millions of shilling in the month the protests started in an unexplainable manner.
"It is noteworthy that several of your Grantees below mentioned received a total of US$ 5.78 Million (approximately Sh752 Million) between April 2023 and May 2024 - with unexplained expedited funding amounting to US$ 1.49 M (approximately Sh194 million) - over the last month alone," Sing'oei said in the letter dated July 18, 2024.
The Ford Foundation, however, denied the allegations, insisting that their operations have always been transparent.
The Government of Kenya had at the time listed at least 16 Non-Governmental Organisations as having facilitated the protests.
