President Ruto to visit China next week

The Chinese Embassy in Kenya announced on Thursday that Ruto’s visit is upon invitation of China President Xi Jinping. 

Recently, Kenya sought a Chinese contractor a Ksh.190 billion Nairobi-Nakuru highway expansion deal.

The project to turn 140 km (87 miles) of single-lane road into a multilane highway had been given to French consortium Vinci SA during President Uhuru Kenyatta’s tenure. 

Reuters reported that the Kenyan government, through Kenya National Highways Authority (KeNHA)  said the deal with the France consortium put the risk from insufficient traffic demand onto the government, thus revisiting the terms of the agreement.

Now, the Chinese company that will take the project is yet to be revealed. 

Ruto will be making a return to China months after a visit to the Asian nation during the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) that was held in September 2024. 

During FOCAC, Kenya sought to secure critical agreements and investments that will benefit the country for years to come.

Then, President Ruto sought to discuss strengthening of bilateral ties and exploring new areas of cooperation with China’s Jinping. 

Other discussions centred on extending and completing phases 2B and 2C of the SGR, dualing the Nairobi Northern Bypass, and other critical infrastructure projects.