Inside President Ruto’s China State visit

President William Ruto will register his first State visit to China this week since taking office.

In a bid to re-affirm Nairobi's long-standing diplomatic and economic ties with Beijing, the week-long deliberations with his host President Xi Jinping will focus on Debt payment and financing for major infrastructure projects, which include the extension of the Standard Guage Railway from Naivasha to Malaba via Kisumu and request for the proposed Rironi - Mau summit dual carriage.

The projects enhance regional connectivity. We are looking towards completing the projects with an aim of enhancing Commerce.

Kenya and China will formally sign bilateral agreements in Trade, Security, Manufacturing, Technology transfer, Agriculture, Climate change, Tourism and Education sectors.

“We are looking forward to completing our grid by 2030. We want to borrow the technological advancement of green energy through solar panel reliability. We want to encourage the Chinese expansion of electric automobiles,” Ruto said.

The Kenya-China cooperation in infrastructure, trade, and investment under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), leveraging on the Beijing-Washington diplomatic fallout as a result of the ongoing tariff wars, to Kenya’s advantage.

“It's an honour for me and the people of Kenya to attend the State visit in Beijing. It speaks to the friendship between these two countries. It gives me the opportunity to exchange at the highest level, expanding our relationship for mutual benefit for both Kenya and China,” added Ruto.