NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 7 – The Korean government is looking to connect Nairobi and Seoul through a direct flight, opening tourism opportunities for the country.
Its Special Presidential Envoy for the African Climate Summit, which ended yesterday, Jan Sung Min, said
Linking the two nations, Min said, will remove existing business bottlenecks that impede economic ties between the two nations.
“We are thinking about it. If we do this, more people will come into Kenya to take part in Kenyan experiences such as the Safari rally. This way, the Kenyan tourism industry will spur,” said Min.
At a press conference in Nairobi yesterday, the envoy also announced that the Asian country is open to scaling up bilateral trade with the country, narrowing the huge trade imbalance between the two countries.
Korea says its trade volumes with Kenya currently stand at $500 million. Out of this, Kenya only exports $50 million worth of goods.
“We need to balance this kind of imbalance in the trade between our two countries. But more importantly, we need to expand trade between Kenya and Korea because there is a lot of potential,” said Korean ambassador to Kenya Yeo Sung Jun.
Kenya being Africa’s gateway, the ambassador stressed the need to strengthen ties through favorable direct foreign policy and awareness.
Some of the areas of partnership include Kenya’s export of avocado, tea, and coffee to Korea, as well as technology and renewable energy.
In March, the Kenyan and Korean governments launched four Economic Innovation Partnership Program (EIPP) projects to fast-track the development of the Konza Technopolis project.
The EIPP projects included the Intelligent Transport System (ITS) and Integrated Control Centre, establishment of a startup ecosystem at Konza Technopolis, the development of smart logistics at Konza, and the construction of the Konza-Nairobi Corridor Transport Network.
Likewise, the special envoy championed the Korea-Africa summit slotted for next year as well as its flagship exhibition, dubbed the 2030 Busan Expo, under the banner ‘No single-use plastic Expo’.
