WASHINGTON – WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Thursday praised William Ruto of Kenya for “his bold leadership” as the White House marked the first state visit to the United States by an African leader in more than 15 years. Ruto spoke of building a brighter future.
The Kenyan president and his wife, Rachel Ruto, arrived at the White House for a pompous ceremony aimed at recognizing the growing importance of the US-Kenya relationship. The leaders will later hold talks and a joint press conference before an official state dinner at the White House.
“Together, the United States and Kenya are working together on the challenges that matter most to the lives of our people – health, security, economic security, cybersecurity and climate security,” Biden said at the arrival ceremony. “Mr. President, your bold leadership on this front has been important and significantly impactful.”
Biden and Ruto are using their three-day state visit to Washington, in part, to call on economies around the world to take action to reduce the huge debt burden crushing Kenya and other developing nations.
The call to action, called the Nairobi-Washington Vision, comes as Biden presses his call to African nations so that the US can be a better partner than economic rival China. Beijing has been deepening its investment on the continent – often with high-interest loans and other difficult financing conditions.
Biden and Ruto want creditor nations to reduce financing barriers for developing nations that have been constrained by high debt burdens. They also call on international financial institutions to coordinate debt relief and support through banks and multilateral institutions that provide better financing conditions.
“Today we have the opportunity to build synergies, to build partnerships that will not only solve our current problems, but also to build a future that is much more promising, much more prosperous, fairer, freer, healthier and healthier. much more prosperous future,” Ruto said.
The White House also announced $250 million in grants to the International Development Association, part of the World Bank, to help poor countries facing crises.
Separately, a $1.2 billion government financing bill passed by Congress in March allows the U.S. to lend up to $21 billion to an International Monetary Fund for Poverty Reduction and Growth, which provides interest-bearing loans. zero to support low-income countries as they work to stabilize their economies, boost growth and improve debt sustainability. This financing is expected to be made available to the IMF in the coming weeks.
An Associated Press analysis of a dozen countries most indebted to China — including Pakistan, Kenya, Zambia and Laos — found that the debt is consuming an increasing amount of tax revenue needed to keep schools open. , provide electricity and pay for food and fuel.
Behind the scenes is China’s reluctance to forgive debt and its extreme secrecy about how much money it lent and on what terms, which has prevented other major creditors from stepping in to help.
Kenya’s debt-to-GDP ratio reaches 70%, with the majority owed to China. Credit rating agency Fitch estimates that Kenya will spend almost a third of its government revenue on interest payments alone this year.
Ruto said on Wednesday that his negotiations with Biden will address “how we can have a fairer international financial system where all countries are treated equally”.
Biden also informed Congress on Thursday that he will designate Kenya as a key non-NATO ally, according to the White House.
The designation, while largely symbolic, reflects how Kenya has grown from a regional partner that has long cooperated with U.S. counterterrorism operations on the continent to a major global influence — even extending its reach into the Western Hemisphere. Kenya will be the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to receive this status.
Kenya is expected to soon send 1,000 police officers to Haiti to help quell the gang violence that has plagued the Caribbean nation for months. The Biden administration praised Kenya for stepping up its action in Haiti when so few other countries agreed to do so. Haiti is the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere and has been mired in political instability and natural disasters for decades.
The US has pledged $300 million in financial assistance for the mission in Haiti, which will also include support from the Bahamas, Barbados, Benin, Chad and Bangladesh. Ruto is expected to discuss the upcoming mission with Biden, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and other officials during his talks in Washington.
Ruto arrived in Washington on Wednesday and began his visit by meeting with Biden and technology executives from Silicon Valley and Kenya’s growing technology sector — known as the Silicon Savannah.
Administration officials said several private sector investments are expected to be announced during the visit. The Kenyan president told technology executives that Kenya — and Africa more broadly — has a young, innovative population that is “hungry for opportunity.”
The White House announced that it was working with Congress to make Kenya the first country in Africa to benefit from funding through the CHIPS and Science Act, a 2022 law that aims to reinvigorate the computer chip sector in the United States through dozens billions of dollars in targeted government support.
“I think we have a historic moment to explore investment opportunities between Kenya and the United States,” Ruto said.
Biden brought together dozens of African leaders in Washington in December 2022 to argue that the United States under his watch was “fully involved” in Africa’s future. He showcased billions in promised government funding and private investment on the continent in health, infrastructure, business and technology. The Democrat also promised to visit Sub-Saharan Africa in 2023.
But other priorities got in the way last year, including the Israel-Hamas war and Biden’s long battle with Republicans to renew funding for Ukraine in its war with Russia. Biden’s promised visit to Africa never materialized. Biden, who faces a tough re-election battle in November, said in conversation with reporters when Ruto arrived at the White House on Wednesday that he still plans to go to Africa.
“I plan to go in February after I’m re-elected,” Biden said.
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AP journalist Sagar Meghani contributed to this report.
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