During Kenyan President William Samoei Ruto’s visit to New Delhi, India extended a $250 million Line of Credit to Kenya and signed five MoUs to bolster ties with the African nation.
Ruto was in India for a three-day State Visit from 4-6 December, during which he called on Indian President Droupadi Murmu and PM Narendra Modi.
$250 Million Line of Credit, 5 MoUs
The line of credit has been extended to Kenya for agriculture mechanisation projects.
Ruto said that the aid will help Kenya address pressing issues like food security and cost of living.
Kenya and India are united by history, trade and friendship. Our partnership is focused on empowering our people to explore opportunities in either nation and leverage our strengths and resources for shared prosperity. We will also enhance our multilateral collaboration to… pic.twitter.com/ox7IfEReFF
— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) December 5, 2023
The Kenyan President mentioned that forging stronger ties with India will be instrumental in advancing Kenya’s Bottom-Up Empowerment Transformation Agenda (BETA).
During the visit, the two countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in sports.
They signed an MoU on cooperation in the field of sharing successful digital solutions implemented at the population scale for digital transformation.
A cultural exchange program between the two countries was announced for 2023-27, and an MoU was signed between the Bureau of Indian Standards (BSI) and the Kenyan Bureau of Standards (KEBS).
Additionally, an MoU was signed between Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and the Open University of Kenya (OUK).
Kenya Invites Indian Investment
Ruto requested India to allow Kenyan health professionals to come to India for short training courses.
He said that Kenya would make it easier for Indian health experts to come to the country to work and train others.
The Kenyan president also invited Indian companies to invest in Kenya, especially in agriculture and value addition, manufacturing, pharmaceutical, health, ICT, green energy and green mobility, affordable housing, and water sectors.
Ruto mentioned that over 70% of health products in Kenya originate in India.
He discussed ways to begin manufacturing some of the health products in his country to meet the needs of the local market and East African countries.
Furthermore, Kenya offered to provide land to Indian companies and institutions for the cultivation of crops, including millets.
Trade in Local Currencies, Space Training Program
Modi and Ruto discussed the need to use local currencies to enhance bilateral trade and investment as well as financing development partnership projects.
During the visit, New Delhi welcomed Nairobi’s decision to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and Global Bio-Fuels Alliance (GBA).
India announced a customised training program for 20 space scientists from the Kenya Space Agency/University of Nairobi in the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in space technology applications.
Witnessed the signing of five memorandum of understanding aimed at enhancing our bilateral relations. I welcomed the decision by India to open its market to avocados from Kenya and the continued assistance in health, energy, ICT sectors and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises. pic.twitter.com/Btw0QATXRQ
— William Samoei Ruto, PhD (@WilliamsRuto) December 5, 2023
Additionally, the Indian side agreed to share expertise on space-based applications and develop a geo-spatial information portal for Kenya with its remote sensing data sets and thematic layers.
Maritime Cooperation in Indian Ocean Region
India and Kenya unveiled a “Joint Vision Statement on Maritime Cooperation in the Indian Ocean Region- BAHARI (Ocean in Swahili)” as a blueprint for scaling up maritime engagement between the two countries.
The vision will boost maritime trade and industry, advance maritime security, harness blue economy potential, accelerate connectivity, reinforce capacity development, and improve information sharing.
Both sides agreed to consolidate ongoing cooperation in line with the existing bilateral Defence Cooperation Framework, including Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) and in-ship visits and joint exercises.