Kenya ready to become gateway to Eastern and Southern Africa for Ukraine

Kenya expresses readiness to become an entry point for Ukraine to the Eastern and Southern Africa market, and is also open to Ukrainian agricultural technologies and innovative products.

Prime Minister of Ukraine Volodymyr Groysman stated this during a meeting with Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Kenya Hon. Justin Muturi, the Government portal reported.

"Eastern Africa is a large market, while Kenya is the gateway to the Eastern, Central and Southern Africa. In addition, Kenya is tea, coffee and 40% of the flower market. We are ready to work together on projects that will be beneficial to both countries," Hon. Justin Muturi said.

Diplomatic relations between the two countries have been established since 1993. At the various levels, the sides consider about a dozen bilateral agreements on trade, economic and investment cooperation, interaction between chambers of commerce and industry, in the sectors of education, tourism, the legal sphere, the establishment of a joint trade and economic commission, mutual protection of investments, avoidance of double taxation, etc.

Two years ago – after an extreme drought in Africa – our country exported to Kenya some 180,000 tonnes of maize, which greatly contributed to the strengthening of food security of Africa. Now Kenya enters the list of the most promising markets for Ukraine – both in the regional and global context.

"We are interested in developing bilateral relations because we have a number of important economic opportunities that can be used. And this visit is another step in the right direction," Groysman said.

"We now have about USD 70 million in turnover. This is not enough. We have a lot of areas of mutual interest. Therefore, we are open to business circles. I invite a delegation of the Kenyan Government to visit Kyiv as well, so that we can exchange opportunities. It's not just about export-import operations, but also about the functioning of the full-fledged Embassy of Kenya in Kyiv, as well as direct flights. We are ready to cooperate in the areas of mutual interest," he stressed.

In turn, Hon. Justin Muturi noted that he had visited historic places connected with different milestones of Ukrainian history, including the recent history.

"Moreover, I want to assure that Kenya firmly supports the territorial structure of Ukraine and the principles of the inviolability of borders. We believe that the borders of countries, in particular of Ukraine, cannot be violated. We remain resolute in this stance. And we would like to call on all countries of the world to adhere to the rules of inviolability of borders and maintaining peace," the speaker of the Parliament of Kenya said.

As known, this is the first visit of the Kenyan high-ranking official to Ukraine and the first opportunity to discuss the details of cooperation between the two countries.

Ukrinform