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SPEECH BY HIS EXCELLENCY HON. UHURU KENYATTA, C.G.H.

,
PRESIDENT AND COMMANDER IN CHIEF OF THE DEFENCE
FORCES OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA DURING THE VISIT BY
HIS EXCELLENCY LI KEQIANG PREMIER OF THE STATE
COUNCIL OF THE PEOPLES REPUBLIC OF CHINA AT STATE
HOUSE, NAIROBI ON 10TH MAY, 2014
Ladies and Gentlemen,
China is an ancient civilisation, a rising nation, and Kenyas ally of
long standing.
So it is with great pleasure that I, on behalf of the people of Kenya,
welcome the visit of the rime !inister of the eoples "epublic of
China, #is $%cellency Li Ke&iang.
remier Lis visit coincides with the anniversary of a historic visit to
'frica by #is $%cellency (hou $nlai, one of the great leaders of the
last century ) remembered in 'frica, and elsewhere, as a statesman
of wit and subtlety, remar*able administrative ability, and
outstanding foresight.
(hou $nlai brought a timely revolutionary message, stressing 'sia
and 'fricas common struggles against imperialism and colonialism.
#e reminded us that it was also our shared ob+ective to slay the
dragons of poverty and underdevelopment.
remier Lis tour of 'frica builds on this most distinguished
foundation, and will deepen thefriendship between our two peoples,
which dates bac* to the ,fteenth century, but also ta*es in the most
modern forms of assistance and cooperation.
-ur tal*s, and the agreements we reached this morning, covered a
variety of matters, but allow me to mention +ust three. the Standard
Gauge "ailway/ the protection of our national heritage/ and our
regions peace and security.
0oday, we shall witness the signing of various instruments that will
*ic*start agreements we concluded in 1ei+ing last year ) notably the
loan instruments that will facilitatethe development of the Standard
Gauge "ailway 2SG"3.
Kenya and Chinas partnership in the development of the Standard
Gauge "ailway line will not only revolutionise the economy of our
region, it will also rea4rm Kenyas status as the regions transport
and economic hub.
0he colonialists laid the e%isting single5trac* railway lineshortly after
the turn of the 67
th
century. 0oday,it is an obsolete anachronism. 0he
Standard Gauge "ailway that we will +ointly develop not only alerts
the world to the fact that Kenya can now chart its own development
path/ it also ma*es it self5evident that we have a new and able
partner in our march to the progress and prosperity that the future
holds.
8ith the implementation of this and other 9agship pro+ects in
cooperation with Chinese public and private partners, China has
secured a place of honour in the history of Kenyas economic
development.
I wish also to commend :our $%cellencys continued support and
cooperation in our e;ort to combat and eventually eliminate the
illegal trade in ivory as well as in our other initiatives to preserve our
natural heritage. I am particularly pleased to note that we shall
witness the e%change of notes between our governments which will
aid the establishment of our -wning the <ight initiative in wildlife
protection. :our assistance is most opportune.
0o realise our common ob+ective of shared prosperity, we will need
to deepen our trade and investment ties. ' critical lesson we have
drawn from Chinas remar*able growth over the last three decades
is that prosperity is achievable with proper planning and prudent
investment.
!y government is committed to ma*ing Kenya the manufacturing
and technology hub of 'frica. 8e will achieve this by putting in
place appropriate investments, policies and reforms, the better to
enhance our business environment, and to ma*e Kenya both the
,rst choice of outside investors, and the home of the most energetic
local entrepreneurs.
-ne immediate step we can ta*e here is one we agreed at our tal*s
today ) we agreed on the urgency of convening a 1ilateral 'dvisory
Council.8hen adopted, the council will provide an ideal forum for
constant and fruitful engagement at every level ) most especially in
the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the various
initiatives and agreements we have concluded so far.
Kenya and Chinas venerable friendship has reliablyyielded mutual
advantage. China also, as we all recognise, possesses substantial
political, diplomatic and ,nancial assets, which, if fully applied,
would be a game5changer in the regions peace and security e;ort.
0hat is why we see* a deeper engagement with China on matters of
peace and security. -ur tal*s centred on issues of critical
importance, and particularly on Somalia and South Sudan.
0he intervention by '!IS-! has stabilised the situation in Somalia,
and is rapidly easing the Somali governments e%tension of its
control over its territory, while limiting actsof piracy along the $ast
'frican coast.
IG'= recently achieved a substantial success in South Sudan, when
under its auspices, the leaders of the main contending parties,
resident Salva Kiir and =r "ie* !achar, agreed a peace deal.
In both those cases, the help and support of China has been
invaluable. 8e discussed how best we could build on these
achievements going forward.
's you can see, there is much to do. 1ut we are con,dent that in the
coming days, the partnership between Kenya and China will
continue to 9ourish, and I now as* you all to give the warmest
welcome to remier Li and his delegation.
T!"# $%&

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