Governor Arati leads Kisii County delegation to China
Governor Simba Arati and his delegation from Kisii in China.
Kisii Governor Simba Arati, his deputy Robert Monda, Assembly speaker Philip Nyanumba and about 20 Members of the Kisii County Assembly are in China to source for development.
Mr Arati and his delegation attended the third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo in ChangSha, Hunan province.
This is a forum for African countries to showcase their products and create a strategic economic and trade partnership with China.
“In the expo, I am negotiating and rooting for in-depth China- Kisii County trade cooperation and investments in areas of agriculture, renewable energy, electricity, transportation, mining, house development and healthcare,” said Mr Arati who, together with his delegation, will be in China for about two weeks.
It is not clear how the Kisii County Government will directly deal with a foreign country, but sources indicate that the relevant ministries in the national government will be roped in to actualise any agreements made.
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The Governor noted that agriculture is the backbone of Kisii economy and being one of his transformation agendas, he made a deliberate effort to look for support from Hi-tech Agri Group Company that specialises in food production technology and mechanisation in agriculture.
The company based in Wuhan city has a vast agricultural industrial park which the Kisii delegation toured.
In efforts to boost the county revenue and income for residents, the governor engaged the president of the China-Africa Economic and Trade Promotion Council Mr Xu Xiangping, seeking his support in the uptake of Kisii County agricultural products into the Chinese market and beyond.
Through the China-Africa Economic and Trade promotion council, Mr Xiangping promised to fast-track the exportation of tea, coffee, pyrethrum, cassava, sorghum, banana and hass avocado directly from the Kisii County.
In the area of job creation, the President of the Council also agreed to lobby for investors to construct value-added industries in Kisii County.
Mr Arati said he is keen to deepen talks between Wuhan and Kisii for economic and trade cooperation and visited the Wuhan Municipal Bureau of Commerce.
A member of the Party Group and Deputy Director of Wuhan Municipal Bureau of Commerce Mr Yi Inchuan attended the forum and held talks with the Governor.
Other relevant responsible persons of departments and enterprises such as the Foreign Affairs Office of the Municipal Party Committee, the Hubei African Civil Chamber of Commerce, the Hubei Lianfeng Overseas, the 11th Bureau of China Railway, and the Wuhan Electrification Bureau of China Railway attended the meeting.
“I welcome the visit by Arati and his delegation to Wuhan,” said Mr Yi.
He pointed out that Wuhan is located in a strategic position in China's economic geography, with convenient transportation, abundant talent reserves and obvious advantages in foreign investment cooperation.
In recent years, Wuhan and Kenya have achieved gratifying results in economic and trade cooperation. This year marks the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Kenya.
“Wuhan will be more proactive in implementing the Belt and Road Initiative, further strengthening ties between the two regions, and deepening practical cooperation in infrastructure construction, economic and trade exchanges, and the application of scientific and technological innovation achievements,” said Mr Yi.
He added, “We will accelerate the construction of a new high ground for innovation and cooperation with Kenya and build a new model for comprehensive exchanges between China and Africa."
Mr Yi noted that the Kenyan government, including Kisii County, had responded positively to the Belt and Road Initiative and hopes to strengthen cooperation with Wuhan in infrastructure construction, mineral resources development and agricultural trade to push Kenya-China trade to a new level.
