Ruto meets South Africa president in Addis Ababa

President William Ruto on Sunday met his South Africa counterpart Cyril Ramaphosa at the African Union headquarters during the 37th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

"Our countries are committed to continuing working together in deepening cooperation on African issues and also at the multilateral level," Ruto said on X.

The President said Kenya and South Africa have had excellent diplomatic, trade and people-people relations in the past 30 years.

"Last year, these ties received a big boost after our two countries eased visa regimes for the citizens of both nations," he said. 

On Friday, President Ruto left the country to attend the 37th African Union Summit of Heads of State and Government.

State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed said during the summit, Ruto was expected to speak on the education inequalities in Africa, which have left 98 million children in Africa without access to schooling.

He would also deliver a report on the strides the continent has made in mitigating the climate crisis.

"This includes the Nairobi Declaration, agreed upon during the first-ever Africa Climate Summit in Nairobi last September," Hussein said then.

Ruto would do this in his capacity as the chair of the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC).

The theme of the summit is on building resilient education systems for Africa's 21st-century human capital.

The trip to Addis Ababa comes barely a week after the President returned from a four-day official visit to Japan.

He then went to Dubai, where he attended the World Governments Summit in Dubai.

The summit, themed “Shaping Future Governments,” brought together various governments, international organizers, and leaders to discuss innovative solutions for future challenges, fostering international cooperation.

He also held bilateral meetings with other leaders present at the summit.