Kenya and India have signed five memoranda of understanding to enhance bilateral relations.
President William Ruto said forging stronger ties with India will be instrumental in advancing Kenya’s Bottom-Up Empowerment Transformation Agenda.
The President said Kenya stands to gain significantly from India’s progress in technology, agro-industrial transformation, universal healthcare provision, slum upgrading, affordable housing programs and the digital economy revolution.
Speaking during bilateral talks with President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi, India, President Ruto said India has agreed to facilitate skills and technology transfer, in line with Kenya’s particular needs, in sectors such as health, education, ICT and digital governance.
“The thrust of the business transacted during our official bilateral meetings with the government of India, as well as engagements with the representatives of the Indian private sector consisted of BETA-aligned encounters,” he said.
To accelerate the realization of Universal Healthcare, Kenya will work with India to advance the country’s pharmaceutical and medical commodities manufacturing capabilities as well as advanced medical technologies including digital health and telemedicine.
“This would greatly deepen and broaden access to affordable healthcare for Kenyans from every walk of life and especially those at the bottom of the socioeconomic structure,” he said.
The leaders discussed the expansion of bilateral trade and investment between Kenya and India and committed to resolving impediments to market access and addressing non-tariff barriers.
The government of India confirmed that it had also raised the issue concerning two Indian nationals, one of them a well-known media professional employed with a TV company, who went missing from Nairobi last year in July.
Kenya is yet to officially confirm if the local media reports claiming they were killed for assisting the social media campaign of the president are true.
The government said that the Indian high commission continues to monitor developments related to the case and remains in touch with Kenyan authorities.
Significantly, the meeting saw Kenya offering, in line with local laws, to provide land to Indian companies and institutions for cultivation of crops, including millets, in the coastal African country.
“The Government of India undertook to encourage Indian companies for investment in the sector, including in equipment and technology on mutually agreed terms. Both sides noted that enhancing bilateral agricultural cooperation would increase bilateral trade and contribute to food security in Kenya,” said a joint statement issued after the meeting.
Read also: https://zungukatv.com/2023/12/02/president-ruto-calls-for-global-support-in-climate-action/