The China-Kenya Industrial Cooperation Matchmaking Conference was held in Nairobi
2019-12-09 16:24

On December 2nd, The China-Kenya Industrial Cooperation Matchmaking Conference was jointly held in Nairobi by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of People’s Republic of China, the Ministry of Industrialization of Kenya and the Kenya Investment Authority. Wang Jiangping, Vice Minister of China MIIT, Wu Peng, Chinese Ambassador to Kenya, Guo Ce, the Economic and Commercial Minister-Counsellor at the Chinese Embassy in Kenya, Joseph Munyao, representative from Ministry of Industrialization, Chairman Dennis Waweru and DG Moses from Keninvest, attended the Conference. Many enterprises and financial institutions from China and Kenya also participated in the conference.

Vice Minister Wang Jiangping said that the two countries would uphold the concept of giving priority to the development of industry, continue to deepen the Kenyan industrial market, study and formulate long-term green development strategies and policies based on the current economic and social development of Kenya, create a favorable business environment for industrial enterprises and build a closer China-Africa community with a shared future. At the same time, the two countries should also uphold the principle of mutual benefit and win-win results. China will support Kenya in fostering its endogenous growth capacity independent of raw material exports, encourage SMEs of both sides to continue to develop in the special economic zones, jointly promote the transformation and upgrading of manufacturing and processing, and explore a special economic zone model suitable for the coordinated industrial development of the two countries.

Ambassador Wu Peng said that China would continue to promote the “Belt & Road” initiative and the “Eight Major Initiatives” of the FOCAC Beijing Summit to better align with Kenya's “Big Four Agenda”, so as to promote development of China-Kenya relations. The China-Kenya cooperation has made good achievements. The SGR phase 2A was successfully opened to passenger traffic last month, and a cargo opening ceremony will be held this month. The Chinese government encourages Chinese enterprises, especially SMEs, to invest in Kenya and hopes that Kenya will continue to support Chinese enterprises and create a better business environment for them. Ambassador Wu Peng also asked Chinese companies to respect local laws, operate in compliance with local regulations and fulfill their social responsibilities more actively.

DG Moses from Keninvest highly praised the conference and expressed the hope that under the background of the new industrial revolution, cooperation with China in the fields of manufacturing, medical care and automobile would be strengthened to improve Kenya's current employment situation and promote the achievement of Kenya’s “Big Four Agenda”. Kenya attaches importance to the investment of Chinese enterprises and will actively create a favorable business environment for Chinese enterprises.

During the event Chinese SMEs signed MOUs with their Kenya counterparts in an effort to forge economic partnerships for prosperity.