This archive report was first published on 2 July 2021.
On July 2, 2021, President Uhuru Kenyatta joined eight other African Heads of State and a host of foreign dignitaries in paying tribute to Zambia's founding President Kenneth David Kaunda.
President Kenyatta described the late President Kaunda as one of the last great sons of Africa who dedicated his life to serving the people of the entire African continent.
"Today, we mourn a father and a man who was willing to sacrifice to ensure justice prevailed and stood up for the people of Africa," President Kenyatta said during the State Funeral at Lusaka's main showground in Zambia.
President Kaunda, the first President of Zambia, died on June 17, 2021, at the age of 97. He will be laid to rest on July 7 at the Embassy Park Presidential Burial site in Lusaka, where three other Zambia's past Presidents were buried.
President Kenyatta said Kenya will remember President Kaunda, fondly called "KK," as a great friend and partner of Kenya's founding father Mzee Jomo Kenyatta.
"I remember fondly the many moments they shared together, fought and struggled together for this continent," President Kenyatta said.
Other African leaders who spoke at the state funeral included Presidents Hage Geingob (Namibia), Filipe Nyusi (Mozambique), Nana Akufo-Addo (Ghana), Emmerson Mnangagwa (Zimbabwe), Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa), Mokgweetsi Masisi (Botswana), Lazarus Chakwera (Malawi), and Prime Minister Moeketsi Majoro of the Kingdom of Lesotho.
