Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi on Monday held talks with French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot in Paris, with preparations for the Africa–France Summit set to be hosted by Kenya in May 2026 topping the agenda.
Mudavadi said plans were on top gear ahead of the summit, scheduled for May 11–12 in Nairobi, describing it as a landmark event for the continent.
The meeting will be the first Africa–France Summit to be held in a non-Francophone African country since the forum’s inception in 1973.
“Kenya attaches the highest strategic importance to the Summit,” Mudavadi said, adding that Nairobi is keen for the meeting to deliver tangible outcomes.
“Kenya’s objective is that the Summit adopts declarations that will deliver concrete, bankable and monitorable outcomes in key priority areas,” he said, citing reforms to the international financial architecture, energy transition, green industrialisation, digital innovation, sustainable agriculture, health systems and coordinated action on climate change.
Mudavadi welcomed France’s indication that outcomes from the Nairobi summit would inform its agenda during its G7 Presidency in 2026.
“We are consolidating the relevant teams to work closely to ensure coherence between the Summit deliverables and the G7 process,” he said.
He noted that hosting the summit would provide an opportunity to elevate African perspectives in global decision-making while reinforcing Kenya’s growing geopolitical influence and leadership in climate diplomacy.
During the talks, Mudavadi underscored the importance of France as a key economic partner and a gateway to the wider European Union market, particularly following the entry into force of the Kenya–EU Economic Partnership Agreement in July 2024.
However, he acknowledged structural imbalances in trade between the two countries.
“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 industrialisation agenda,” he said.
Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi on Monday held talks with French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot in Paris. PHOTO/OPCSPrime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi on Monday held talks with French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot in Paris./OPCS
Mudavadi said Kenya is seeking to shift relations from a predominantly trading model to a production- and investment-driven partnership anchored in value addition, industrial cooperation and technology transfer.
He invited French firms to expand investments in manufacturing, agro-processing, pharmaceuticals, green industry, logistics and digital technologies, positioning Kenya as a regional production and export hub.
The discussions also covered cooperation under the Win Win Africa (Agora) initiative, security and peace missions, health, infrastructure and aviation.
Mudavadi said Kenya values France’s support in health, including a €136 million cooperation envelope and the Food4Education partnership, and expressed interest in collaboration on major infrastructure projects such as the modernisation of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and expansion of the Nairobi Commuter Rail.
The visit was at the invitation of the French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs.
