On November 20, 2018, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted sponsoring countries for the upcoming Sustainable Blue Economy Conference, Kenya’s first ocean economy summit. Cabinet Secretary Monica Juma met representatives of Canada and Japan, the two co-hosts of the three-day event set to begin on November 26.
Juma said the co-hosts were each contributing Ksh 300 million toward the conference. She also said several other countries had joined as co-sponsors, including China with Ksh 20 million, Fiji with Ksh 500,000, and France with Ksh 300,000.
By Monday evening, Juma said 180 countries had confirmed participation and 11,571 people had registered to attend. She added that the conference was also being funded by China, South Africa, Qatar, Fiji, and the United Kingdom, alongside Portugal, Norway, and Nigeria.
The summit was expected to draw a number of heads of state and government, among them Seychelles President Danny Faure, who had been named the African Union champion for the Blue Economy the previous week. Other leaders expected in Nairobi included Namibia’s Hage Geingob, Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni, Congo’s Sassou Nguesso, Somalia’s Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, and Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama.
Juma also expressed appreciation to Japan for its pledge of Ksh 300 million and for what she described as continued close cooperation with Kenya.
