The World Bank Group approved $150 million in financing Monday to continue supporting Burundi’s social protection sector through the new “Cash for Jobs” (Cash4Jobs) project targeting extremely vulnerable citizens.

The objectives of the project are to strengthen the management capacity of social safety net programs in order to promote more effective coverage while facilitating access to employment for the most vulnerable populations, the World Bank said in a statement.

The project aims to reduce poverty by protecting vulnerable populations through cash transfers and other measures that will help improve the country’s human capital indicators.

It will also promote economic opportunities through access to productive inclusion initiatives and jobs.

The grant funding for the Burundi Cash4Jobs project is being provided by the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) and will be implemented over five years.

Burundi’s Cash4Jobs project is part of a series of projects supporting job creation in Burundi by prioritizing economic empowerment activities for women and youth.

It is in line with the vision of the government of Burundi to strengthen community resilience and promote inclusive economic growth, said Jean-Christophe Carret, World Bank Country Director for Burundi.

The Cash4Jobs project will cover all 18 provinces of Burundi.

The IDA helps the world’s poorest countries by providing grants and low to zero-interest loans for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty and improve poor people’s lives.

A landlocked country in East Africa, Burundi is a low-income economy with 80% of the population employed in the agricultural sector. - James Tasamba, Anadolu Agency

Bank of Uganda. Photo via Central Banking

The governor of the Bank of Uganda, Emmanuel Tumusiime-Mutebile, died on January 23 at Nairobi Hospital, in the Kenyan capital. He was 72.

The central bank did not give a cause of death in its statement, but media reports indicated the governor died of complications from diabetes. He was admitted to Nairobi Hospital in December 31.

The president of Uganda, Yoweri Museveni, said on Twitter that Mutebile was “a humble servant whose acumen and perspectives on economic matters were singular”. - Ben Margulies, Central Banking

Qatar Chamber first vice chairman Mohamed bin Towar al-Kuwari and Minister Lawrence Karanja held discussions at the chamber’s headquarters in the presence of Kenya’s deputy head of mission to Qatar, Washington A Oloo. Photo Gulf Times

Officials of Qatar Chamber and the Kenyan Ministry of Industrialisation, Trade and Enterprise Development held a meeting in Doha to discuss investment opportunities in Kenya’s agriculture, industry, and infrastructure sectors.

Qatar Chamber first vice chairman Mohamed bin Towar al-Kuwari and Minister Lawrence Karanja held discussions at the chamber’s headquarters in the presence of Kenya’s deputy head of mission to Qatar, Washington A Oloo.

Aside from investment opportunities, both officials also discussed economic and commercial relations between Qatar and Kenya and ways to enhance them, as well as areas of co-operation between the Qatari and Kenyan private sector.

The minister praised the relations between Kenya and the State of Qatar, and called on Qatari investors to invest in Kenya, which, he said, “is rife with opportunities in most sectors.”

Karanja also said both countries “own tremendous potentials” that stimulate fruitful co-operation, citing the possibility of organising a business forum that brings together Qatari and Kenyan businessmen to discuss ways of boosting co-operation and establishing partnerships for the advantage of both countries’ economies.

Al-Kuwari, for his part, stressed that Qatar Chamber supports and encourages the bolstering of co-operation between companies from both countries and the forging of alliances in various sectors, such as agriculture and food security, especially since the State of Qatar places great importance on food security and strives to develop it in line with the developments that the state is witnessing. - Gulf Times