National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetangula yesterday called for the establishment of direct flights from Kenya to Algeria.

Speaking in Algiers during a meeting hosted by the President of the National People’s Assembly, Ibrahim Boughali, Wetangula said that the move will enable ease of transacting business in tea, coffee and fruits sectors from Kenya and boost levels of engagement in trading in oil and petroleum as well as gas from Algeria.

International space

Wetang’ula acknowledged the support accorded to Kenya by Algeria, particularly in the international space and specifically when Kenya was rooting for representation in the UN Security Council. 

“Kenya and Algeria have shared history traced from our forefathers who fought for Africa’s liberation, I am glad that we continue to pull together with the aim of lifting the lives of our people”, said Wetangula. He has said that unity between Kenya and Algeria will go a long way to stabilise Africa by tackling bottlenecks that exist in security, trade, education, health and agriculture, among others.

Parliamentary diplomatic engagements between Kenya and Algeria are set to be ignited following the official visit by Wetang’ula who is accompanied by a section of Members of the National Assembly. The Members accompanying  Wetangula are Daniel Nanok, Marwa Maisori Kitayama, Jack Wamboka, Suleka Hulbale, Zaheer Jhanda, Zamzam Mohammed and Abdi Ali Abdi.

The members will form part of the parliamentary friendship group and are set to meet their counterparts in Algeria to discuss areas of collaboration including exchange programmes on various fronts between the two countries. 

 Wetang’ula who was received in Algiers by his counterpart, Boughali and the President of the Council of the Nation at the Senate, Salah Goudjil, underscored the need for the two countries to cement their bilateral and parliamentary diplomatic engagements to build on the already existing goodwill among the two nations; Kenya and Algeria.  “Africa has come of age to be independent and solve her own problems by using her well-endowed natural resources,” he said.

Wetang’ula said that there is a need to put to proper use the natural resources of the African countries to help build the African economy for greater socio–economic development. He called for the need to encourage synergy and collaboration among the two Houses of Parliament in Algeria siting similar working relations in Kenya as both are bi-cameral systems of parliament.