Kenya, US sign deals worth USD100m as President Kenyatta rallies support for big 4 agenda

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta today witnessed the signing of deals worth Sh10 billion (approximately US $100m) at the ongoing US-Kenya Trade Conference in Nairobi.

Speaking during the official opening of the conference held at the expansive UN Complex in Gigiri, President Kenyatta who was accompanied by several cabinet secretaries and high ranking government bureacrats, challenged the American and Kenyan private sector to take advantage of the opportunities presented by his big 4 development blueprint to invest in the country.

President Kenyatta particularly outlined the immense opportunities that exist in manufacturing, food and nutrition, affordable housing and provision of universal health care-the four areas at the core of his second term in office.

“Given our long and well-established relationship, we can do more together. I invite the US Companies to walk with us on the big 4 journey,” President Kenyatta said.

In his statistics ladden speech, President Kenyatta noted that the US private sector has a competitive advantage in housing, health technologies and pharmaceuticals aspects that his administration is looking at tapping into.

“In addition to the resources, we anticipate that American investors would bring in knowledge and technology transfer,” the President observed.

The 60-member American delegation from the US Presidential Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa is led by the US Under-Secretary for Commerce Gilbert Kaplan and is aimed at interrogating President Kenyatta’s big 4 development agenda for investment opportunities.

The bilateral conference is organised by the US Chamber of Commerce and began Wednesday and expected to conclude Friday.

Speaking just before President Kenyatta, Under-Secretary Kaplan said that the US was committed to supporting Kenya’s big 4 agenda by attracting American investments into the country.

The multi-billion shilling deals agreed upon will cover both public and private sector investments and will mostly be channeled into big 4 leaning projects.

Among the outstanding of the many agreements agreed upon include a 20 million dollar deal between the Kenyan government and American firm Medtronic for a medical dialysis centre whose scope will cover strengthening specialised medical services in the country.

Others include a partnership agreement between Rendeavour and Unity Homes for the construction of 1,200 affordable homes in Tatu City in Kiambu County worth 40 million dollars, a 10 million dollars credit line from World Business Capital, a global small and medium enterprise financier, to Victoria Commercial Bank, a projects and investments financing arrangement between USAID Power Africa and the Kenyan Government designed to enable Kenya achieve its objective of ensuring universal electrification by 2022.

The United States ranks as Kenya’s seventh largest trading partner with overall trade standing at Sh104 billion for the year 2017. It is also Kenya’s third leading export destination at Sh47.27 billion.