President William Ruto has challenged African leaders and the private sector to support ongoing efforts aimed at eliminating unnecessary impediments to regional trade.
Addressing delegates at the opening of the third Kenya international investment conference during the African private sector dialogue on the African continental free trade area, Ruto said Kenya is working on a plan to ease movement of people from the continent.
Expressing regrets that some of the delegates attending the event were subjected to unnecessary red tape, the president said it should be effortlessness for those seeking to visit the country to do so adding that Kenya, which is described as the cradle of mankind, should be their second home.
“That might be the last time you are looking for a visa to come to Kenya, because of two reasons. One, this is home and two because we support whole heartedly (AFCTA) and we must remove any impediment to the movement of people around our continent.” Said the president.
The ongoing conference includes a working retreat for 54 Africa Trade Ministers to develop the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) implementation matrix and Road map that will play a key role in opening the 1.3-billion-person market in Africa for Kenya’s Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and positioning Kenya as the gateway to Africa. Further, it features the Africa Private Sector Alliance (APSA) Forum that brings together top 100 businesses in Africa to deliberate on Private Sector Growth and Development in the continent.
