This archive report was first published on 21 October 2019.
On October 23 and 24, 2019, President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga will be in Sochi, Russia, for the inaugural Russia-Africa Summit. The summit, organized by President Vladimir Putin, aims to revive Soviet-era relationships and build new alliances, reinforcing Moscow's global power in the face of confrontation with the West.
President Kenyatta will join over 35 Heads of State and Government for the two-day summit, where he will hold bilateral talks with Putin on the sidelines. Raila Odinga, in his capacity as the continent's High Representative for Infrastructure, will address the over 3,000 delegates at the summit, vouching for infrastructure projects in the continent.
“I hope that new areas and forms of co-operation will be outlined during the forum, and promising joint initiatives will be put forward that will help take Russian-African collaboration to a whole new level and develop our economies and the prosperity of our peoples,” President Putin said.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Ambassador Macharia Kamau revealed that the President's in-tray for the two-day summit is full, with a packed schedule of meetings and discussions.