Ruto markets Kenya as gateway to Africa trade

President William Ruto used the Norway-Kenya business forum in Oslo to make a bold pitch that Kenya is no longer seeking aid-driven partnerships but strategic investment and industrial co-production with Europe, particularly Norway’s deep-pocketed sovereign wealth ecosystem.

Ruto framed Kenya as the “gateway to Africa,” urging Norwegian investors to shift from traditional development cooperation to long-term commercial partnerships anchored on manufacturing, innovation and value addition.

He argued that Africa is entering a new economic era defined not by scarcity but by underutilised opportunity, citing vast natural resources, renewable energy potential, a youthful population and the African Continental Free Trade Area market of 1.4 billion people.

“The question for global investors is no longer whether to engage Africa, but how, and through which gateway. I am here to make the case that the gateway is Kenya,” Ruto said Tuesday at the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise in Oslo.

A central theme of his address was the repositioning of Kenya as a clean-energy manufacturing hub for global markets.

He said more than 90 per cent of Kenya’s electricity is renewable, giving investors a rare opportunity to produce goods with a low carbon footprint for both African and European markets under existing trade agreements.

“Make it in Kenya. Make it clean. Sell it to Africa, Europe, and the world,” he said, pitching Kenya as a dual-access production base.

Ruto also highlighted reforms aimed at improving investor confidence, including digitised permits, tax incentives for exports, removal of ICT restrictions, and a one-stop investment centre.

He pointed to growing foreign direct investment inflows and strong returns on the Nairobi Securities Exchange as evidence of improving market confidence.

He directly courted Norwegian capital, referencing the country’s $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund and urging investors to tap into Kenya’s infrastructure pipeline, estimated at $40 billion.

“We have made investing faster. We have made it more predictable,” he said, adding that Kenya is correcting “perceptions that continue to price African risk far above its reality.”

Sector-specific proposals formed a key part of the speech.

Ruto called for deeper cooperation in renewable energy storage and transmission, expansion of blue economy partnerships in fisheries and aquaculture, and a green ammonia fertiliser initiative with Norwegian firms to boost food security.

He also positioned Kenya as a fintech and digital innovation hub, inviting Nordic tech and venture capital firms to scale solutions across Africa through Nairobi.

Citing existing Norwegian investments through institutions such as Norfund, Ruto argued that Kenya has already proven its credibility as an investment destination.

He said Kenya is now seeking to move beyond pilot projects into large-scale industrial transformation driven by private capital.

“Kenya offers a clean grid, bankable projects, and one of the most attractive green investment opportunities anywhere in the world,” he said.