NAIROBI- President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud arrived in Kenya Friday afternoon for a two state visit to Kenya’s capital Nairobi.
The President was received at Jomo Kenyatta International airport (JKIA) by Kenya’s Agriculture Minster Peter Munya among other officials from Kenya and Officials from Somali embassy in Nairobi led by Somalia Ambasador to Kenya Mohamud Ahmed Nur Tarsan.
The recently elected President is expected to hold bilateral talks with his host President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The President of Somalia H.E Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has arrived in Nairobi for an official visit. He was received at JKIA by Agriculture CS Hon. Peter Munya. The recently elected President is expected to hold bilateral talks with his host President Uhuru Kenyatta. pic.twitter.com/USSm3zSzWo
— Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Kenya (@ForeignOfficeKE) July 15, 2022
President Mohamud is also scheduled to hold meeting with the Somali diaspora in Nairobi to get an understanding of their plights and issues and explain his government agenda to them.
Last Month Kenya Agriculture Minister Mr Peter Munya announced export of Miraa to Somalia.
Addressing then journalists in Meru County, Peter Munya confirmed that diplomatic negotiations between the Kenyan government and the Federal Republic of Somalia had been successful and the remaining paperwork will be complete in two weeks’ time.
Miraa export to Somalia will kick off in the next two weeks following fruitful engagement between the two countries.
Somalia suspended miraa imports from Kenya two years ago, on March 19, 2020, citing Covid-19 restrictions but the suspension was never lifted as diplomatic issues kicked in.
The ban led to a loss of a daily market for more than 50 tons of khat valued at more than Sh20 million then.
The country has since replaced the Kenyan khat with the Ethiopian variety after Mogadishu, in June last year, entered ‘a balance of trade deal’ that enables the Horn of Africa country to sell its fish to Ethiopia.
But the election of Hassan Mohamud on May 15, has revived optimism among miraa traders who are now calling for caution in how Kenya handles its neighbour.
