President William Ruto is set for a five-day state visit to China from April 22 to 26, 2025, barely a year after he visited the Asian country.
The visit comes at a time Kenya is building stronger ties with China, amid raging trade wars between world’s leading eonomies and the US. In recent times, US has been raging tarrif wars against other economies, with China being the most affected.
Currently, the global balance of power is shifting, and Kenya, like many emerging economies, is navigating this complexity by diversifying its partnerships. China’s ascent as a global economic powerhouse provides African countries with alternative negotiations on financing, technology, and infrastructural development expertise.
“At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Kenyan President William Samoei Ruto will pay a state visit to China from April 22 to 26,” the Chinese Embassy in Kenya confirmed the visit.
According to governmnt sources who spoke to Business Today, the Kenya strategy is anchored in non-alignment and opportunity-based diplomacy by engaging with partners who deliver, not only based on ideology, but on shared development outcomes.
“Kenya’s engagement with China is a move to achieve long-term development goals while retaining diplomatic flexibility. The inclusion of Kenyan projects within China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) enables the country to tap into China’s global infrastructure push while aligning with local priorities,” senior government sources told Business Today.
“By participating actively in multilateral platforms such as FOCAC (Forum on China–Africa Cooperation), Kenya amplifies its voice on the international stage, ensuring that its development agenda is integrated into broader global strategies.”
Here are some goodies that President Ruto hopes to bag for Kenya during his trip to China;
Infrastructure
The president hopes to bag infrastructure interventions are geared toward building industrial corridors, reducing logistics costs, attracting private investment, and fostering inclusive growth.
China’s involvement in Kenya’s infrastructure development so far have been instrumental in transforming the country’s physical and economic landscape. Beyond roads and railways, infrastructure is seen as an enabler of trade, industry, and innovation.
The 2024 FOCAC summit saw President Ruto secure Ksh40 billion in concessional financing for the completion of 15 stalled infrastructure projects. These include roadworks, energy transmission, ICT connectivity, and water projects distributed across ten counties.
A signature project under this cooperation is the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), which is now set for extension from Naivasha to Malaba. This will enhance regional integration and trade flows with Uganda, DRC, and South Sudan.
He also hopes to get more financial support for the Talanta Sports City project — co-financed and executed with Chinese partners — is more than a stadium.
Other projects that Ruto hopes to get backing for include rural roads connectivity, dams construction, and urban mobility improvements such as the Nairobi Intelligent Transport System (ITS) and junction upgrades.
Economic growth, exports & industrial investment
While China is Kenya’s largest trading partner, the trade balance remains heavily skewed. Kenya imports high volumes of manufactured goods and machinery, while its exports to China are limited to a few primary products such as tea, leather, sisal fibre, fish, and scrap metal. This reality has shaped a new focus on value chain development and industrial collaboration.
Sources within gvernment revealed to this publication that discussions are underway for joint ventures in leather processing and textile production, particularly through county-level industrial parks. Sisal, which is in high demand in China for high-quality paper and carpet production, presents an opportunity to establish local processing plants that can serve both domestic and export markets.
The government is also negotiating for Chinese enterprises to set up shop within Kenya’s Special Economic Zones, with incentives for those that invest in skills transfer, technology localization, and employment creation. This strategy is expected to transform Kenya from an export market for raw materials to a regional manufacturing hub. This is aligned with BETA’s vision to increase the manufacturing sector’s contribution to GDP from 7.6% to over 20% by 2030.
Fiscal sustainability and currency diversification
Kenya’s foreign debt profile has previously drawn criticism in recent years, particularly with regard to exposure to USD-denominated loans. The volatility of global currency markets has led to increased debt servicing costs and budgetary pressure. The government is now pursuing a strategy of loan portfolio diversification, where the Renminbi (RMB) is increasingly seen as a viable alternative.
By securing RMB-denominated financing through institutions such as the China Eximbank, Kenya reduces its exposure to dollar shocks while accessing concessional terms and longer repayment periods.
Moreover, Kenya is negotiating for loans tied to revenue-generating infrastructure, ensuring that borrowed funds yield economic returns through tolling, taxation, and industrial productivity.
Opportunities pipeline
Ruto will also be pushing to have Kenya and China formalise an expansive suite of cooperation agreements that span nearly every key development sector.
Some areas ripe for cooperation are in the Blue Economy, Scientific and Technological Cooperation, Belt and Road Initiative alignment, concessional loans, Vocational Education, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Economy governance, Cybersecurity and Railway sector cooperation.
Read: Kenyan President William Ruto State Visit to China
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