Food for port

"Kenya will lease out 40,000 hectares (about 100,000 acres) of land to a Gulf state to grow food at a time when the country is facing serious food shortages.

The deal with the government of Qatar is similar to a model that has been widely criticised by agricultural experts worldwide and mainly involves poor African countries and rich nations or corporations especially from the Middle East.

In the Kenyan case, Qatar will, in exchange for the land, fund construction of a new Sh2.4 billion port on Lamu island to serve as Kenya’s second port after Mombasa. The deal was struck during President Kibaki’s visit to Qatar in late November."