Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and Kenyan President William Ruto signed the Joint Declaration for a Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership on the sidelines of President Ruto's visit to Cairo. Photo courtesy of Egyptian Presidential spokesman.
This took place during Ruto's current visit to Cairo, where he held bilateral talks with President El-Sisi, followed by a joint press conference.
According to the Egyptian presidency, Cairo and Nairobi also signed 12 agreements covering areas such as political consultations, diplomatic training, investment promotion, port cooperation, youth initiatives, space, communications and IT, higher education, gender equality and women's empowerment, as well as housing and urban development.
"Egypt is one of our key strategic partners," said the Kenyan president at the press conference.
Cairo and Nairobi share a common vision for advancing sustainable development in the continent, he added.
Economic relations
Trade exchange between Egypt and Kenya reached $567 million in 2024, compared to $638 million in 2023, according to the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) on Wednesday.
Egypt has long been committed to supporting sustainable development across African countries, including Kenya.
This support focuses on training and capacity building, particularly in areas like water management, early warning systems, flood forecasting, and modern irrigation techniques, with the aim of strengthening technical skills.
According to Egypt's Ministry of Irrigation, the technical collaboration between Egypt and Kenya began in 1993, with Egypt providing assistance in groundwater management through a memorandum of understanding, which included drilling 180 wells.
In 2016, the two countries signed another memorandum of understanding to implement a project focused on water resource development and management.
The project includes activities such as optimizing water resource use, capacity building in areas like well drilling, constructing rainwater harvesting dams, training in water resource management, and introducing modern irrigation techniques in agriculture.
Combat terrorism
During his speech in Cairo, the Kenyan president emphasized the urgent need for a comprehensive and well-defined strategy to combat terrorism in Africa and strengthen peace and stability across the continent, commending Egypt's crucial role in this effort.
“Thanked President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi for his central role in peace efforts in Somalia, Sudan, and the Middle East,” Ruto stated on X following the press conference.
Short link: