President Uhuru Kenyatta has called on the international community to lift sanctions against Zimbabwe, saying the restrictions were hurting the country.

The President termed the sanctions as illegal, and assured Zimbabwe of Kenya’s continued advocacy to ensure that the restrictions are lifted.

“These hardships were artificially created and we continue to call on the international community to remove the illegal sanctions,” he said.

President Kenyatta spoke at State House, Nairobi, yesterday (top) during a joint press briefing with his visiting Zimbabwe counterpart Emmerson Mnangagwa shortly after the two Heads of State led their respective delegations in bilateral talks.

During the talks, Kenya and Zimbabwe signed seven bilateral agreements, memoranda of understanding (MoU) on political and diplomatic consultations; tourism and wildlife conservation; and civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents investigations.

Others were on women empowerment and community development; youth affairs; cooperatives; and sports.

President Kenyatta said the agreements would enable Kenya and Zimbabwe to address challenges facing them, particularly youth unemployment.

The Zimbabwe Head of State said his visit was aimed at deepening the strong and historical relations between Nairobi and Harare. He said unity of purpose would help Kenya and Zimbabwe effectively deal with emerging challenges such as terrorism and the Covid-19 pandemic.

Earlier, President Mnangagwa, who arrived in Kenya on Tuesday evening, was received at State House, Nairobi, by President Kenyatta in an elaborate State reception.

Head of Public Joseph Kinyua and Cabinet Secretaries Raychelle Omamo (Foreign Affairs), Peter Munya (Agriculture), Amina Mohamed (Sports), Prof Margaret Kobia (Public Service), Eugene Wamalwa (Defence), Joe Mucheru (ICT) and Attorney General Paul Kihara were among senior Government officials at the bilateral talks.

– PSCU