Uhuru Kenyatta calls for more intra-continental trade
Kenya’s President, Uhuru Kenyatta has called for more trade between Ghana and Kenya, and for more intra-continental trade to consolidate the efforts being made already.
The Kenyan President who was a guest of honour at a parade in the Ghanaian capital Accra to mark Ghana’s 59th Independence Day celebration Sunday March 6, 2016, said while a lot has been done, a lot more can be done in the areas of increased trade volume and cultural exchange.
“Let us continue to work together to enhance the trade between our two countries which continues to record steady growth, let us continue to engage each other through our business communities and attract investment to our capitals, and let us continue to interact with each other so as to forge partnerships that will lead to more business, more skills transfer and complement the magnificent tourism sector that exists in our two countries,” he said.
He followed his call with an open invitation to the Ghanaian business community saying, “Kenya is open for business.”
President Kenyatta also expressed his support for efforts at establishing a Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA), which is being supported by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the East African Community (EAC), as well as a borderless Africa.
He noted that Kenya and Ghana enjoy cordial relations dating back to the Fifth Pan-African Congress of 1945 when the Founding Fathers of both nations, Kwame Nkrumah and Mzee Jomo Kenyatta met in London.
“Our shared history, brotherhood through our shared experience of Pan-Africanism, the struggle for independence and nation-building helped to establish a strong bond. We have related well at bilateral and multilateral levels for the benefit of our peoples,” he said.
Uhuru Kenyatta said Kwame Nkrumah’s vision for Pan-Africanism, also shared by Kenya’s founding fathers is steadily being realized in Africa, particularly with the launch of the Agenda 2063 which shows determination for integration to achieve sustained socio-economic and political development.
By Emmanuel Odonkor