Mudavadi takes Raila’s AUC vote chase to Namibia
Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs CS Musalia Mudavadi and (inset), former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
What you need to know:
- Mr Mudavadi is expected to hold talks with Namibian Vice-President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah.
- The Prime Cabinet Secretary is expected to push for increased collaborations between the two countries
Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has taken Raila Odinga’s campaigns for the African Union Commission chairperson to Namibia, a trip that will also see Nairobi seek to strengthen its ties with Windhoek.
Mr Mudavadi left Nairobi on Sunday and is expected to hold talks with Namibian Vice-President Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah.
This becomes Kenya’s lobbying trip for Mr Odinga’s candidature in Southern Africa following last month’s official commissioning of Kenya’s bid in Nairobi, an event attended by a section of presidents from the East African Community (EAC).
Kenya is fielding a candidate for the AUC top post for the second time in a row, following the defeat of Ambassador Amina Mohamed in the last election, but the country faces stiff competition from Djiboutian candidate Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, who has been foreign minister for more than 10 years.
The trip comes days after Mr Odinga joined the Kenyan delegation to the China-Africa summit in Beijing, where President William Ruto met with at least six presidents from the continent to strengthen Kenya’s bid.
In China, Dr Ruto met, among others, Rwanda President Paul Kagame, who was absent during the launch of Mr Odinga’s bid in Nairobi.
Apart from campaigning for Mr Odinga, the Prime Cabinet Secretary is expected to push for increased collaborations— including review of several business and diplomatic protocols, and Namibia’s plan to set up a diplomatic mission in Nairobi.
He will also push for improvement of Kenya-Namibia trade ties to cement the 1992 General Agreement on Cooperation that established the Kenya-Namibia Joint Commission of Cooperation (JCC).
According to Kenya, the balance of trade has been in favour of Namibia for over a decade to the tune of Sh11.16 million, where Kenya exports an average of Sh106.31 million of goods, while it imported goods worth Sh117.76 million from Namibia.
“Although Namibia has a relatively small population, thus making it a small market for retailers, it is rated the 26th most important new market for retailers, and the second most important in Africa after Botswana, per the Global Retail Development Index 2013 by AT Kearney,” a statement by Mr Jacob Ng’etich, Director of Press Service in Mudavadi’s office, reads in part.
The prime Cabinet secretary will also seek to have Kenyans take advantage of the robust diplomatic relations, and visa-free protocols to invest in the cereal sector.
About 1,000 Kenyans work in Namibia in the fields of medicine and nursing, teaching, architecture and other professions, which prompted the country to promise Kenyan businessmen a five-year multiple-entry business visa, which has yet to be fulfilled.
