“Without a doubt, Kenya and Egypt enjoy cordial and friendly relations founded on a long history of friendship and common aspirations of our people,” he stated/PSCU
NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 18 – President Uhuru Kenyatta held bi-lateral talks with Egyptian leader Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Saturday where the two pledged to strengthen ties in various areas of cooperation.
Following the talks the two leaders held a press conference where President Kenyatta emphasized the need for them to work together in countering violent extremism and radicalization.
He further expressed gratitude for Egypt’s support in ensuring the two UN offices continue to operate in Kenya and stressed that he would be making visits to Egypt to continue with the deliberations.
“Without a doubt, Kenya and Egypt enjoy cordial and friendly relations founded on a long history of friendship and common aspirations of our people,” he stated.
“Our ties go back to the pre-colonial days when the then President provided assistance to our Kenyan freedom fighters and others through the Kiswahili broadcast from Cairo which was then called the Voice of Africa.”
He observed that Indeed since then, the Kenya-Egyptian Joint Commission for Cooperation which is currently in its sixth cycle has served us as a useful vehicle for promoting political, economic social and diplomatic cooperation between the two countries.
“Indeed as we have said, it has eased an array of agreements and memorandum of understanding covering matters as diverse as agriculture, livestock, tourism and trade, education, culture, investment and diplomacy,” he stated.
He emphasized that this is proof of the depth of cooperation and the friendship that exists between our two countries.
“Indeed it seems to me that as we go forward, all we need to do is to review these agreements and ensure their full implementation so that we can begin to see these agreements turned into mutually beneficial programs and projects for our two countries,” he said.
El-Sisi on the other hand stated that Egypt will not spare any effort to take strategic partnership with Kenya to a whole new level.
He stated the need for both countries to strengthen their cooperation especially in combating terrorism and extremism.
“I am very pleased to be in Nairobi. I look forward to our continued communication to strengthen our cooperation,” he said.
He indicated that during the talks, they agreed to combine efforts to restore stability in the Horn of Africa.
He stressed that Egypt will not spare any effort to take strategic partnership with Kenya to a whole new level.
He further welcomed the growing cooperation between the private sectors of both our countries in the recent years
He stated that Egypt and Kenya are bound together by a long history of cooperative development.
Earlier, the Egyptian Head of State was welcomed to State House Nairobi with full military honors that included a 21 gun salute.
In November last year, Vice President William Ruto visited Cairo, discussing with El-Sisi the strengthening of cooperation efforts in various fields between African and Nile Basin countries in particular.
At the time of his visit, Ruto announced that Kenya had exempted Egyptians from the previous necessity to obtain entry visas in advance to visit the country.
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