• Uhuru held private talks with King Phillipe upon arrival.
• Uhuru is scheduled to meet the President of the European Council Charles Michel to discuss Kenya-EU relations and address a Kenya-Belgium business forum.
Image: PSCU
President Uhuru Kenyatta started his two-day official visit to the Kingdom of Belgium and the European Union.
Upon arrival on Monday afternoon, Uhuru was received by King Phillipe at the Royal Palace in Brussels.
He arrived in Brussels on Sunday evening aboard a Kenya Airways aircraft, is the President-in-Office of the 79-member OACPS.
During the two-day visit, Uhuru is scheduled to meet the President of the European Council Charles Michel to discuss Kenya-EU relations and address a Kenya-Belgium business forum.
Uhuru held private talks with King Phillipe upon arrival, accompanied by CS Raychelle Omamo (Foreign Affairs), Betty Maina (Trade), and Aden Mohammed (EAC).
Also on the president's itinerary is a meeting with the Secretary-General of the Organisation of the African, Caribbean, and Pacific States (OACPS) Georges Rebelo Pinto Chikoti and an address to the organization's Committee of Ambassadors.
Speaking ahead of the president's arrival, Kenya's ambassador to Belgium Jacob Kaimenyi said during the visit, Uhuru will address matters related to Kenya-Belgium, and Kenya-EU relations as well as regional agenda in his capacity as the Chairperson of the East African Community (EAC).
Kaimenyi said that the president will discuss the progress of the post-Cotonou agreement with his European Council counterpart and get an update on the instrument's rollout progress from the Secretary-General of the Brussels-based multilateral institution.
"We've had the Cotonou agreement which has been there for 20 years, coming to an end in 2020. We have negotiated another agreement between the European Union and OACPS, 79 countries, called the post-Cotonou agreement, post-2020 so to speak," Kaimenyi said.
Image: PSCU
On Kenya-Belgium relations, Kaimenyi said Uhuru’s meeting with King Phillipe will help strengthen diplomatic ties between Nairobi and Brussels, while investment and trade matters will be dealt with at the business forum.
He said Kenya is working on growing its trade with Belgium by addressing barriers such as double taxation, and diversifying its exports beyond tea and coffee to include horticultural crops such as mangoes and other tropical fruits.
Kaimenyi added that the president’s meeting with his European Council counterpart Charles Michel comes at an opportune time when Kenya and the EU are gearing up to start negotiations for a new partnership agreement for the period 2022 to 2027.
He also revealed that Uhuru and his European Council counterpart will discuss the Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), a matter that has been outstanding since 2014.
The two leaders are also expected to discuss the progress of the ongoing development of a strategic dialogue framework between Kenya and the EU.
The decision to elevate the Kenya-EU relationship was arrived at during President Michel's last visit to Nairobi.
"When the President of the Council, Charles Michel met the President at State House, the issue of upping our game in terms of strategic dialogue between EU and Kenya was raised," Kaimenyi said.
. We have the relevant ministers, the Minister for Trade CS Maina is going to be here, she will be supported by CS for EAC Adan Mohammed. They're going to hold a meeting with requisite officials from the EU to discuss the matter. Having discussed this matter with EU external service officials, there's a lot of excitement. People are very optimistic."