President William Ruto left for Beijing, China, last evening to attend a key international summit that brings together leaders from Africa. The summit runs from September 3 to 6 and will be chaired by President Xi Jingpin.
“Ruto will represent Kenya at this year’s Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit in Beijing,” said a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“He will also hold a bilateral meeting with Xi.” Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, who also heads the Foreign Affairs docket, is already in China ahead of the opening of the summit.
Discussion issues The summits fosters engagement between China and African leaders, focusing on infrastructure development, ICT, climate change, and governance.
“China’s rise as a global economic powerhouse underscores the importance of this summit,” said the Foreign Affairs office.
Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Chen Xiaodong said last week that this year’s FOCAC marks another reunion of the China-Africa family following the Beijing (2006), the Johannesburg (2015), and Beijing (2018) summits of the FOCAC.
Leaders of many African countries and the chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahanat will lead delegations to participate in the summit. The United Nations will be represented by the Secretary-General.
Also present will be relevant international and regional organisations. Xiaodong said the summit will hold high-level meetings on the topics of state governance, industrialisation and agricultural modernisation, peace and security, high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, as well as a conference of Chinese and African entrepreneurs.
The summit will also adopt two outcome documents – the Declaration and the Action Plan – to build major consensus between the two sides and chart a path for implementing high-quality China-Africa cooperation in the next three years.
Xiaodong said since its establishment 24 years ago, FOCAC has adhered to the principles of planning, building and benefiting together.
This is the second foreign trip by President Ruto after Gen Z orchestrated protests that rocked the country in June over the Finance Bill 2024.
