Kenya Gears Up to Host Historic Africa-France Summit in Nairobi

Plans are on top gear ahead of the Africa-France Summit to be held in Nairobi in May 2026, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has revealed. Mudavadi said, Kenya attaches the highest strategic importance to the summit, the first ever to be held in a non-Francophone African country since its inception in 1973. He was speaking in Paris, France when he held talks with the French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot. “Kenya’s objective is that the Summit adopts declarations that will deliver concrete, bankable and monitorable outcomes in key priority areas; including reform of the international financial architecture, energy transition, green industrialisation, digital innovation, sustainable agriculture, health systems and concerted action on climate change,” noted Mudavadi. “Kenya welcomes France’s indication that the Summit outcomes will inform its agenda during its G7 Presidency in 2026, and we are consolidating the relevant teams to work closely to ensure coherence between the Summit deliverables and the G7 process,” added Mudavadi. Mudavadi said the Africa-France Summit to be heled between 11th and 12th May, will focus on critical global issues and it is expected to create and opportunity that will bring African voices to the forefront of global decision-making. “France remains a key economic partner for Kenya in Europe and an important gateway to the wider European Union market, particularly following the entry into force of the Kenya–EU Economic Partnership Agreement in July 2024.” said Mudavadi. “Kenya’s confirms its full political commitment to delivering a successful Summit and invites France to continue providing strong political and technical support during the preparatory phase,” urged Mudavadi. For Kenya, hosting the summit is an opportunity to showcase its growing geopolitical influence and assert its leadership in climate diplomacy, reinforcing its place on the global stage. Mudavadi said Monday’s talks also focused on how to further deepen the partnership and collaboration between Kenya and France, anchored in shared values, mutual respect and a common commitment to peace, development and multilateralism. “Kenya appreciates the strong political signal of the evolving and inclusive nature of Africa–France relations. However, Kenya’s trade remains structurally imbalanced, with Kenya exporting mainly primary and semi-processed agricultural products to France while importing high-value industrial and pharmaceutical goods, a pattern that is neither sustainable nor consistent with Kenya’s industrialization agenda,” Mudavadi noted. “Kenya’s strategic objective is therefore to shift the relationship from a predominantly trading one to a production- and investment-driven partnership, anchored in value addition, industrial cooperation and technology transfer,” he emphasized. Mudavadi also the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs, invited French companies to expand their investment in manufacturing, agro-processing, pharmaceuticals, green industry, logistics and digital technologies in Kenya, and to use Kenya as a regional production and export platform for Africa. He said Kenya aims at strengthening business-to-business mechanisms and investment promotion frameworks to ensure that the opportunities created translate into concrete projects and factories on the ground. “I would like to use this visit to underline the political priority Kenya attaches to this initiative and to commit to fast-tracking our internal processes so that we can move rapidly to financing decisions and implementation,” noted Mudavadi. This he said will be extended in cooperation under the Win Win Africa (Agora) initiative, which Kenya values as an important instrument for investing in youth, social cohesion and community-based sports infrastructure. “The programme is currently at the project preparation stage, with the Kenyan side required to finalize and submit the concept note and feasibility study to the National Treasury in order to unlock the financing request,” he said. Both parties reviewed the unfolding regional and global security dynamics as the meeting comes amid the backdrop of emerging, global socio-economic and geo-political trends. Kenya and France agreed on the significance of respecting the UN charter and Principles of international law in supporting both regional and global peace and security initiatives. “Kenya would therefore value France’s support, including within the European Peace Facility and the Kenya–EU Strategic Partnership frameworks, in helping address financing and capability gaps in peace and security missions,” said Mudavadi. Other areas of discussion included health and human development, transport, infrastructure and aviation. Mudavadi said Kenya acknowledges France’s substantial contribution to Kenya’s health sector, including the €136 million cooperation envelope and the Food4Education partnership supporting school nutrition programmes. “Kenya appreciates France’s significant contribution to Kenya’s health sector and reaffirms its commitment to deepening collaboration on resilient health systems, health security, disease surveillance, laboratory and genomic capacity, local health manufacturing and antimicrobial resistance, in support of Universal Health Coverage and pandemic preparedness,” he noted. “I see strong potential for deepening Kenya–France cooperation on flagship infrastructure projects, notably the modernization of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and the expansion of the Nairobi Commuter Rail, including Line 5, through innovative financing and Public–Private Partnership structures.” added the Prime CS. The visit is at the invitation of French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs.