Kazakhstan will foster its diplomatic ties with Kenya through the actualization of the bilateral agreements signed in May this year between President William Ruto and his host Kassym-Jomart Tokayev in Astana.

Speaking in Nairobi on Friday during a roundtable meeting with entrepreneurs and media ahead of the 35th anniversary of independence to be marked this Sunday, Kazakhstan’s ambassador to Kenya, Barlybay Sadykov, said both countries are already at an advanced stage of working towards realizing the signed bilateral agreements for the benefit of their people.

Kenya and Kazakhstan signed ten bilateral agreements during the two heads of state meeting in Astana in May this year in trade, investment, transport and logistics, mining, space technologies, information and communication technologies (ICT), and tourism.

“We want to take our cooperation to a new level and it will be another confirmation of Kenya’s strong desire and commitment to strengthen political and trade-economic cooperation between our countries. Trade-economic relations between our countries are developing very well. However, there is a huge potential for its further activation, and Kazakhstan is interested in expanding cooperation with Kenya,” stated Ambassador Sadykov.

He revealed that government officials from both countries have already made visits to Kenya and Kazakhstan to make the bilateral agreements signed by their leaders a reality.

“Today, Kenya is the fourth largest trading partner of Kazakhstan in Africa with a trade turnover of some $52 million. We see significant potential for fruitful interaction in the fields of transport and logistics, information technology, space, mining, nuclear energy, agriculture, and other industries. Current indicators of trade and economic cooperation do not meet the potential. In this regard, the Kazakhstan side would like to propose to diversify export-import items from both sides,” he added.

Sadykov said Kazakhstan is willing to facilitate Kenyan investors in the coffee and tea sectors through incentives available in its special economic zones, such as the tea hubs in Astana, which will help Kenyan entrepreneurs reach a wider market in Asia and parts of Europe.

The Central Asian nation will celebrate the 35th anniversary of its Republic Day on Sunday, October 25th, which will reflect on the strides made in socioeconomic development.