Ruto meets Ford Foundation boss weeks after claims of funding protests

By Peter Ochieng 

President William Ruto has met President of the Ford Foundation, Darren Walker.

They met in New York, United States of America where the Head of State is attending the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

“Kenya appreciates the Ford Foundation’s commitment to safeguarding our democracy and supporting Kenya's calls for reforms in the global economic institutions, climate action and modern technology regulation,” Ruto shared.

The meeting comes weeks after President Ruto accused the organisation of funding anti-government protests in June and July.

The protests were spearheaded by Generation Zoomers (Gen-Z) and millennials, against the Finance Bill 2024. Ruto claimed the organisation was behind violence and anarchy in the country.

"I want to call out those who are behind the anarchy in Kenya, those who are behind sponsoring chaos in the Republic of Kenya, shame on them because they are sponsoring violence against our democratic nation. I want to ask the Ford Foundation if that money they are giving out to fund violence, how is it going to benefit them?" he said.

The Ford Foundation rejected the accusations. "We did not fund or sponsor the recent protests against the finance bill,” it said in a statement.

According to multiple reports, the US based organisation has no history of sponsoring violence since its creation over 85 years ago.

It provides grants to human rights, press freedom and anti-corruption initiatives and groups worldwide. It opened its first office in the country in 1963, when the nation gained independence from Britain.

The foundation lists 401 Kenyan grantees who received funding between 2006 and 2024, with none of them bearing hallmarks of violence or criminal records.

Ironically, First Lady Rachel Ruto is a beneficiary of Ford Foundation funding. The Ford Foundation on its website states that in November 2014, Rachel Ruto's foundation, the Joyful Women Organization, received $100,119 to promote "table banking" – microloan models that encourage women's enterprise and livelihood projects.