Article “Kenya, Belarus to ‘broaden tie’ after 30 years of good relations” (January 1, 2024, “The Standard”)

The Presidents of Kenya and Belarus agreed to “broaden ties” during talks in Nairobi on December 10, according to the presidency as Minsk seeks to secure more African allies.

The visit by Alexander Lukashenko came weeks after Kenya and Belarus marked 30th anniversary of establishment of relations between the two countries on November 17.

“Immense opportunities exist between Kenya and Belarus that must be exploited for the prosperity of the two countries,” Ruto said, adding that Kenya was keen on tapping Belarus technology in Agriculture.

The two leaders had earlier met on December 1 on the sidelines of the Cop28 in Dubai, UAE, where they agreed on the need to exchange visits and develop a cooperation framework.

Belarus is one of the biggest producers of farm machinery in Eastern Europe, as well as agricultural products such as fertilizer.

Belarus Ambassador to Kenya Pavel Vziatkin says the two countries aim to develop strong economic and trade ties.

He notes that the two countries complement each other especially with the economic priorities of the Kenyan government - increasing agricultural production efficiency and ensuring food security, construction of affordable housing, and development of industries is key.

“In the context of the bottom-up economic transformation agenda and Kenya Vision 2030, Belarus might be considered as a new horizon, a promising partner and a source of new opportunities for long-term development of the Kenyan economy,” the envoy said.

Agriculture is the backbone of Kenya’s economy and ensures valuable contribution to the economic performance with the share in the GDP totaling up to 30-40 per cent.

Although a landlocked small country, Belarus has been a leading exporter of dairy products to more than 110 countries around the globe. Agriculture accounts for seven per cent of its gross domestic product. 

The country in 2021 was ranked position 23 among 113 countries by the Global Food Security Index, while Kenya took the 90th place in the global report released by Economist Impact and Corteva Agriscience.

The Envoy argues that Minsk can help facilitate the main objectives of Kenya’s agricultural policy in improving food security, increase efficiency of the agricultural production and output, and improve access to markets and trade.

“Being a prominent producer of agricultural machinery (every 10th tractor and every 6th harvester in the world are made in Belarus) and fertilizer, Belarus can facilitate the achievement of these goals,” the Belarusian diplomat told The Standard.

He said the Kenyan agricultural sector is one of the most promising area for interaction, and they’re ready to share their skills, competence, technologies and experience, including IT solutions to be implemented into the agribusiness, with Kenyan partners.

In June, Cabinet secretaries Moses Kuria (public service and formerly Trade and investment) and Mithika Linturi (Agriculture) visited Minsk and held talks with Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Aleinik and discussed prospects of cooperation in agriculture and industry.

The soft-spoken Ambassador says his goal is to improve the quality, depth and substance of bilateral relations between the two countries.