• The President termed the sanctions as illegal.
• He assured Zimbabwe of Kenya’s continued advocacy to ensure that the restrictions are lifted.
Image: State House/Twitter
President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday called on the international community to lift sanctions against Zimbabwe stating the restrictions are hurting the Southern Nation African Nation.
The President termed the sanctions as illegal and assured Zimbabwe of Kenya’s continued advocacy to ensure that the restrictions are lifted.
“This we consider being unfair for these hardships were artificially created and we continue to call on the international community to remove these illegal sanctions,” President Uhuru said.
He spoke at the State House during a joint press briefing with the visiting Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa, shortly after the two Heads of State led their respective delegations in bilateral talks.
During the talks, the two countries signed bilateral agreements, which include Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) on political and diplomatic consultations, tourism and wildlife conservation, and civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents investigations.
Other MoU signed were on women empowerment and community development, youth affairs, cooperatives and sports, and recreation activities.
President Kenyatta said the agreements will enable Kenya and Zimbabwe to cooperate in addressing challenges facing them, particularly youth unemployment.
He pointed out that the signing of the agreement on women empowerment was particular since it was entered into on Monday, a day after the International Women’s Day national celebrations during which Kenya re-dedicated herself to the attainment of her ambitions gender goals.
“This MoU will go a long way in realizing this important development agenda. It seeks to promote a closer working relationship between our two countries in achieving the shared vision of women empowerment and community development, and also facilitate the sharing of knowledge, strategies and technology for our women," Uhuru noted.
The President further said that his Zimbabwean counterpart's visit had not only renewed the two nations' friendship and brotherly ties but also re-invigorated the strong historical relations that exists between the African states.
“The friendship between our two countries and peoples goes back to the days before independence, with many people from the Shona community who are now recognized and regularized as Kenyan citizens, settled in our country in 1960,” the President said.
On multilateral cooperation, President Kenyatta congratulated Zimbabwe on its recent election into the African Union Peace and Security Council and assured President Mnangagwa of Kenya's strong backing during his country's two-year tenure.
On his part, President Mnangagwa reiterated the Kenyan call on the international community to lift sanctions placed upon his country terming the restrictions as unilateral.
The Zimbabwe Head of State said his visit to Kenya was aimed at deepening the strong and historical bilateral relations between Nairobi and Harare.
“My visit to Kenya is aimed at consolidating our relations by refocusing our cooperation to increase bilateral trade, investment, tourism, transport, science and technology and innovation among other aspects such as defence and security matters,” President Mnangagwa said.
He said the unity of purpose would help Kenya and Zimbabwe to effectively deal with emerging challenges such as terrorism and the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We affirmed the need for cooperation with bilateral commitment at global levels to deal with pandemics of this nature now and in the future. Both Zimbabwe and Kenya are committed to enhancing cooperation towards mitigating the adverse effects of climate change and other environmental issues,” the Zimbabwean leader said.
At the bilateral meeting, Zimbabwe donated to Kenya 100 metric tonnes of medical oxygen to boost the fight against Covid-19.
Earlier, President Mnangagwa, who arrived in the country on Tuesday evening, was received at State House, Nairobi by President Kenyatta in an elaborate state reception that included a Guard of Honor mounted by the Kenya Air Force and a 21-gun-salute.
Senior Government officials present at the talks included Head of Public Service Dr Joseph Kinyua and Cabinet Secretaries Raychelle Omamo of Foreign Affairs, Peter Munya of Agriculture, Amina Mohamed of Sports and Culture, Prof Margaret Kobia of Public Service, Eugene Wamalwa of Defence, Joe Mucheru of Information and Communication Technology and Attorney General Paul Kihara.