I guess Java wasn’t sufficient...
http://arstechnica.com/open-source/news/2009/06/android-goes-beyond-java-gains-native-cc-dev-kit.ars
Big deal. Android applications are still Java applications.
“Please note that the NDK does not enable you to develop native-only applications. Android’s primary runtime remains the Dalvik virtual machine.”
“The NDK will not benefit most applications.”
“...using native code does not result in an automatic performance increase, but does always increase application complexity.”