(Bloomberg) -- Kenya is in discussions with Abu Dhabi’s Al Dahra to lease farmland to the agribusiness company as part of plans to boost the East African nation’s food security.
Al Dahra will probably invest about $800 million to farm 200,000 acres of land at an irrigation development located in the coastal region, according to Kenya’s principal secretary for irrigation, Ephantus Kimotho.
“We are still negotiating, but we might soon sign a memorandum of understanding,” Kimotho said by phone on Wednesday. The deal may be signed early next year, he said, without giving details on which crops Al Dahra will grow at the Galana Kulalu Irrigation Development.
The company that’s backed by Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ farms on more than 400,000 acres globally and has feed processing and baling facilities. The farmland deal with Kenya expands its reach in Africa where oil-rich Abu Dhabi has been working to build influence and counter dominant powers such as the US, China and Russia.
Read: UAE’s Al Dahra in Talks to Buy Agricultural Land in Egypt: Rtrs
Kenya is currently in talks with Abu Dhabi for a $1.5 billion loan. Earlier this year, the UAE agreed to a $35 billion investment in Egypt.
The United Arab Emirates’ foreign affairs ministry didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. ADQ also declined to comment.
China Road and Bridges Corp will build a dam on a public-private partnership basis at the irrigation development, to support investment in agricultural activities, according to the National Treasury. Kenya is trying to attract private investors to large-scale agricultural projects by offering long-term leases of 10 to 35 years for its 500,000 acres of underutilized state-owned land, according to the Agriculture Ministry.
--With assistance from Adveith Nair and Ana Monteiro.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.