- President Uhuru Kenyatta has hailed the strong bilateral ties between Kenya and Hungary but regretted the low volumes of trade and investment flow between Nairobi and Budapest
- Kenyatta said Kenya had intensified efforts to promote greater linkages and networks between the private sector and business communities in the two countries
- Kenya and Hungary signed four bilateral agreements for cooperation in the health, water, education and diplomacy sectors.
Kenya Hungary trade ties
President Uhuru Kenyatta has hailed the strong bilateral ties between Kenya and Hungary, saying economic cooperation, trade and investments mainly drive the relationship.
However, Kenyatta regretted the low volumes of trade and investment flow between Nairobi and Budapest over the last five decades despite substantial commercial potential.
“To address the low trade volumes, we have to intensify efforts to promote greater linkages and networks between the private sector and business communities in the two countries. We also encourage them to take advantage of the economic opportunities existing in our respective countries,” Kenyatta said during a state banquet.
Kenyatta said Kenya was counting on the support of Hungary to unlock the economic partnership agreement between the East African Community and the European Union.
“Kenya looks forward to the signing of the Economic Partnership Agreement between the East African Community and the European Union to open up greater trading and economic opportunities,” President Kenyatta said.
On multilateralism, President Kenyatta said Kenya and Hungary shared common positions on critical global issues, including climate change and thanked the European nation for the support that led to Kenya’s election as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
“Mitigating climate change is an imperative of our times, and my Government’s commitment to this noble cause extends to the United Nations Security Council where climate and security is an essential focus during our term.
“We look forward to continuing working closely with the Government of Hungary, within the UN system and other multilateral forums, to champion the climate change agenda and other shared global priorities,” he said.
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President Kenyatta reiterated Kenya’s commitment to multilateralism, saying the country fully supports the United Nations system.
On regional peace and security, President Kenyatta said Kenya would continue to utilise her experience as a peace mediator to champion sustainable stability on the continent, particularly in the Horn of Africa region.
“Kenya will continue to leverage on her experience as a mediator and guarantor of peace processes to advance the agenda of sustainable regional peace and security in the Horn of Africa and beyond, and seeks the global community’s support through multilateral fora,” he said.
In his address, Hungarian President János Áder commended the Government for its commitment to improving the lives of Kenyans through transformational development programmes and expressed optimism that the current development tempo will continue beyond President Kenyatta’s term.
“What I wish you, Mr President, because you will hand over your office in August, is that during this remaining six months, you should have enough time and you should have enough strength to prepare all these (development) programmes and to launch them.
“I wish that your successor should have the same enthusiasm and drive to conclude all these (development) programmes like the way you started, Mr President,” President Ader said.
Bilateral ties
Earlier, Kenya and Hungary signed four bilateral agreements for cooperation in health, water, education and diplomacy sectors.
The agreements were signed at State House, Nairobi, shortly after President Uhuru Kenyatta and his visiting Hungarian counterpart János Áder led their respective delegations in bilateral talks.
The agreement on health covers human resource capacity building, information sharing and prevention of diseases, including Covid-19.
The pact on education will double the number of Kenyans receiving Hungarian government scholarships annually from the current 100 to 200 annually. The agreement also covers water covers wastewater management, among other related aspects.
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