Wetang'ula and French Envoy Discuss Deeper Parliamentary Cooperation

National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula on Tuesday met with the French Ambassador to Kenya, Arnaud Suquet /HANDOUT National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula on Tuesday met with the French Ambassador to Kenya, Arnaud Suquet on talks centred on strengthening Kenya–France relations and deepening parliamentary cooperation. Via a tweet, he said the meeting explored ways of enhancing engagement between the two countries’ legislatures, particularly through the Parliamentary Friendship Group. “This morning, I met with the French Ambassador to Kenya, Arnaud Suquet, and we reviewed ways to deepen Kenya–France cooperation, with a focus on strengthening parliamentary engagement through the Parliamentary Friendship Group,” Wetang’ula said. He said discussions also covered preparations for the Africa–France Summit to be held in Nairobi in May. Wetang'ula described summit as a milestone event for Kenya and the continent. “We discussed the Africa–France Summit to be held in Nairobi in May 2026, which will be historic as the first such summit to take place in a non-Francophone country,” he said. Wetang’ula said the summit will focus on key development areas that align with Kenya’s national priorities. “The summit will focus on innovation, infrastructure, climate action and health, sectors that are critical to Africa’s future and shared prosperity,” he added. Kenya is set to host the high-level summit amid growing diplomatic and economic engagement between Africa and France. President William Ruto announced that Kenya and France will jointly host the “Africa Forward: Africa–France Partnerships for Innovation and Growth” Summit in Nairobi on 11 and 12 May. The decision was confirmed by Ruto and his French President Emmanuel Macron during a meeting on September 24 in New York. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week. The summit is part of a renewed drive to strengthen relations between France and African countries through partnerships rooted in mutual benefit. The summit will open with a Business Forum on May 11, designed to showcase innovations and ideas from African and French private sectors. The forum will highlight success stories across the summit’s thematic areas and explore opportunities for collaboration to drive growth and innovation.