By Xinhua
Nairobi : Kenya has launched an endowment fund to ameliorate the suffering of the victims of the post-election inter-ethnic violence which has killed more than 800 people and displaced 260,000.
President Mwai Kibaki who launched the endowment called the National Humanitarian Fund for Mitigation of Effects and Resettlement of Victims of Post- 2007 Election Violence, said it will have an initial capital allocation of one billion Kenya shillings ($14.3 million).
Kibaki, whose re-election sparked protests across the country, said that the fund would assist those whose lives have been shattered by the recent violence.
The fund will address the plight of Kenyans whose livelihoods have been destroyed by the violence by catering to their basic needs and by providing the support needed to enable them to rebuild their livelihoods.
“The object and purpose of this fund is to provide funding for the resettlement of persons displaced as a result of the violence; the replacement of basic household effects destroyed as a result of the violence as well as providing the resources needed to enable victims of the violence to restart their normal lives,” he said.
Kibaki said the fund will also provide funding for the reconstruction of basic housing, rehabilitation of community utilities and institutions destroyed as a result of the violence, adding that the fund shall consist of monies appropriated by parliament as well as grants and donations.