President William Ruto addressing the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 22, 2024
Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Dr Korir Sing’Oei has today used
the occasion of the United Nations Founding Day to outline plans for
commemorating 60 years of Diplomacy.
Dr Sing’Oei speaking to members of the Diplomatic Corps based in
Nairobi observed that Kenya had attained 60 years of active engagement in
international diplomacy since independence and having established its
foreign policy. He noted that Kenya’s diplomatic journey remained
instrumental in shaping the country’s identity on the global stage
notwithstanding the achievements and lessons learned over the decades.
“As the country introspects into its history during the Diplomatic Week
scheduled to take place from November 27 to December 7, 2024, Kenya
remains committed to existing partnerships and will continue to explore
new avenues for collaboration. Kenya recognizes that effective diplomacy
plays a crucial role in national development,” the PS observed.
The Kenya @ 60 celebrations will be graced by His Excellency the
President as the Chief Guest and will bring together stakeholders from
various sectors, including government officials, members of the diplomatic
corps, the private sector, civil society, and the public. The celebrations will
see amongst others, the launch of the revised Foreign Policy which has
been undergoing public participation over the past five months; the
inaugural Ministerial Open Day where the public will engage with the
Ministry and seek various services. There will be exhibitions of various
Governments through their embassies here in Nairobi as well as the
Diaspora Engagement forum all matters of diaspora will be discussed. The
Ministry will also unveil an Art Gallery at the Uhuru Gardens Monument and a Museum showcasing rare and unseen photos dating to the pre-independence period.
Dr Sing’Oei further sought the support of the Diplomatic community
towards the Candidacy of the African Union Commission (AUC)
Chairperson nominee, Dr Raila Odinga whose elections are slated for
February 2025 during the AU Summit in Addis Ababa. Dr Sing’Oei spoke
highly of Dr. Odinga who is recognised as a lifelong Pan-Africanist,
visionary, and action-oriented leader with proven competence noting that
Dr. Odinga’s leadership and exemplary career made him a perfect fit to sit
at the helm of the AUC.
Dr Odinga’s key focus and commitment is to harness Africa’s rich and vast
human and natural resources for the benefit of Africa’s Peoples. Dr. Odinga
has formulated priorities and strategies to address pressing challenges
facing the continent, including: Economic Transformation; Enhancing Intra-
Africa Trade; Financial Independence; Gender Equity and Equality;
Agricultural Transformation; Climate Action; Harnessing Youth Potential;
Continental Integration; and Peace and Security.
The Principal Secretary further elucidated on Kenya’s areas of
concern at the recently concluded 79th Session of the United Nations
General Assembly (UNGA) which included among others, Climate Change
and its role in fueling conflicts and instability across the world, intensifying
resource scarcity, displacing communities, and heightening competition
over essential resources like water and land; the rapid advancements in
technology that are outpacing the ability to harness them for good,
including cybersecurity breaches and sophisticated cyberattacks on critical
infrastructure, increasingly threatening national security and global stability.
Whilst in New York, Kenya called for the strengthening of the United
Nations Offices in Nairobi, as well as the reformation of the International
Finance and Security Architecture to make them representative, inclusive,
transparent, effective, and accountable.
The Principal Secretary apprised the members of the Diplomatic
Corps of Kenya’s concerns for the upcoming COP 29 scheduled to be held
from 11th to 22nd November 2024 in Baku, Azerbaijan. The PS alluded to the
issue of Climate Finance and the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQGs)
frameworks that would prioritize grants and highly concessional finance for
climate-vulnerable nations as well as Cooperation under Article 6 of the
Paris Agreement calling for close cooperation towards developing high
quality carbon markets through reviewable bilateral agreements and a
centralized multilateral marketplace. Kenya will also seek a clear roadmap
towards the phasing out of fossil fuels while encouraging investments in
renewable energy and green minerals.
As part of developments towards the establishment of a United
Nations Humanitarian and Logistics Hub at JKIA, Dogo Kundu and
Naivasha Special Economic Zone, the PS confirmed that land had been
allocated to United Nations Office in Nairobi as collaborative efforts were
underway between the relevant government agencies.
The Director General of the United Nations Office in Nairobi, Dr.
Hawa Bagura commended the Government of Kenya for its efforts towards
ensuring Nairobi remained the preferred duty stations among all UN
Offices. The Nairobi facility presently caters to close to 20,000 staff and
station families with the numbers expected to rise exponentially as several of the
UN Offices seek to transfer their offices and staff to Nairobi within the next
year.