Details of Ruto’s roundtable meeting with Biden

President William Ruto and his US counterpart Joe Biden held a roundtable meeting on technology at the White House in Washington DC on Wednesday, May 22, 2024.

The President, who was accompanied by senior officials from his government and opposition leaders, engaged with Biden on how the two nations can leverage on technology for greater development.

During the meeting, Ruto lauded Joe Biden’s administration for leading the course in digital transformation. The Head of State observed that the US has pumped a significant amount of money into the digital space.

While underscoring the importance of the funding, President Ruto insisted that it will expand opportunities and transform lives not only in Kenya but also across Africa.

“No partnership is as valuable as one that is anchored on technology,” Ruto told officials who convened at the White House for the meeting.

The President and his team are expected to pick important lessons on how the US has secured cyberspace and apply the same knowledge in the country. According to a recent report by the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA), cyber attacks jumped five times.

The spike was attributed to the sharp increase in Artificial intelligence and other technological tools. CA noted that 90 per cent of the detected cyber-attacks were system attacks, while the rest included distributed denial of service, malware, brute force, web application and mobile application attacks.

However, Ruto’s administration is expected to put more measures after meeting with Joe Biden’s team and deliberated on areas of cooperation in the digital ecosystem.

Moreover, key lessons picked from the roundtable are expected to help President Ruto expedite his agenda of digital transformation in various government agencies.

Other engagements

Besides meeting Biden at the White House, Ruto also met the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Mike Johnson and engaged members of the Congress, both Democrats and Republicans, at the US Capitol, Washington, D.C.

During the meeting, Ruto reiterated Kenya-US cooperation and expressed hope for stronger bonds and partnerships with the US in resolving conflicts and tackling insecurity, especially in the Horn of Africa.

He also held talks with the US Senators led by Majority Leader Senator Chuck Schumer and the Minority Leader Senator Mitch McConnell.

Ruto earns recognition

The Head of State was recognised as an honorary member of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC).

Ruto acknowledged the vital role the Congressional Black Caucus continues to play in advancing social justice, human rights and economic development across the globe. He implored Congress to take the lead in reconfiguring the global financial architecture so that power is not in the hands of the few.

“A bold, robust and targeted approach will free Africa of the debt burden and transform the world,” he stated.

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