The President of Kenya, William Ruto, has stated that Africans would no longer need visas to visit Kenya by the end of 2023.
It is horrible for business, Mr. Ruto said to an audience in Congo-Brazzaville, adding, “When people, business people, and entrepreneurs cannot travel, we all become net losers.”
Therefore, he announced that “by the end of this year [2023], no African will be required to have a visa to come to Kenya. Our children from this continent should not be locked in borders in Europe and also be locked in borders in Africa”.
He continued by defending his numerous international travels by stating that they had improved the nation’s economy.
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Mr Ruto has been chastised for taking the most international visits in a single year of any of his predecessors. According to local media, he has visited 38 nations since taking office in September 2022.
However, in a speech on Sunday, Mr Ruto stated that the travels had enabled him to gain jobs for Kenyans and clinch multiple bilateral treaties aimed at opening up markets for local goods.
“There are people on my case as to why I am making foreign trips. That’s my mandate as the president. I am the chief agent of Kenya and ambassador who will plan on how the country will move forward,” Mr Ruto said at a church gathering.
During recent trips to Saudi Arabia and China, the president claimed to have secured 350,000 employment and investment prospects for Kenyans.
The privately owned Standard newspaper has described Mr Ruto as “the flying president”.
