President Ruto to lay wreath in Rome, meet Mattarella and Meloni on first day of Italy visit

State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed, in a post on X dated April 19, said Ruto will later head to the Quirinale Palace for a luncheon hosted by President Mattarella before meeting Prime Minister Meloni at Palazzo Chigi.

The President is also expected to address a high-level session of the Kenya-Italy Business Forum, before ending his first day with an address to Kenyans in the Diaspora.

According to State House, the visit includes scheduled bilateral talks with Italy’s top leadership, with several Memoranda of Understanding and sectoral agreements expected to be signed.

A key focus of the discussions, Hussein Mohamed said, is the acceleration of the Arror, Kimwarer and Itare dam projects, which form part of Kenya’s irrigation programme under the government’s national priorities of irrigation, infrastructure expansion and energy generation.

State House said the projects are expected to expand irrigated land to 2.5 million acres within seven years, strengthen food security and support agricultural exports.

The engagements will also align with Italy’s Mattei Plan, which prioritises cooperation in agriculture, agro-industry, health, clean energy and human capital development.

On the second day, President Ruto is expected to meet industry leaders, including ENI CEO Claudio Descalzi and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) President Alvaro Lario.

He will later head to the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Parliament, where he is scheduled to meet Speaker Lorenzo Fontana.

The head of state will also attend the “Growing Together Through Partnership” event organised by Harmonica Innovation Group at Palazzo Generali.

State House said the President will cap his visit on the third day with an address at LUISS University, as Kenya seeks to strengthen trade and investment ties with Italy.