President William Ruto, on Friday, January 23, held discussions with Italian Ambassador to Kenya Vincenzo Del Monaco at State House, Nairobi, focusing on strengthening bilateral cooperation in key economic sectors and youth empowerment.
According to the statement shared on social media, the meeting focused on the cordial relations between Kenya and Italy.
President Ruto emphasized Kenya’s commitment to deepening cooperation with Italy in priority areas to advance shared prosperity and deliver tangible benefits to the Kenyan people.
“Kenya and Italy enjoy cordial relations built on mutual respect and shared interests. We are keen on deepening our cooperation in priority areas to advance shared prosperity and deliver tangible benefits to our people,” Ruto stated.
The discussions centered on strengthening collaboration to support the coffee and leather value chains, sectors that are critical to Kenya’s economy and employment generation.
A significant focus of the meeting was collaboration in developing technical training colleges to empower Kenyan youth with practical skills that enhance their employability.
“Our discussions focused on strengthening cooperation to support the coffee and leather value chains, as well as collaboration in the development of technical training colleges to empower the youth,” the President said.
The two leaders also discussed the need to fast-track pending programmes between the two countries, with particular emphasis on the commencement of the Itare Dam project.
The meeting with President Ruto came just days after Ambassador Del Monaco held discussions with education officials to advance Kenya-Italy cooperation in the higher education sector.
On January 19, the Italian envoy paid a courtesy call on Dr. Beatrice Muganda Inyangala, Principal Secretary for the State Department for Higher Education and Research in the Ministry of Education.
According to Dr. Muganda, the visit focused on reviewing and fast-tracking a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening Ministry-to-Ministry partnerships between Kenya and Italy.
“Today, the Ambassador of the Italian Republic to Kenya, H.E. Vincenzo Del Monaco, paid a courtesy call for an engagement meeting. The visit focused on reviewing and fast-tracking the draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at strengthening Ministry-to-Ministry partnerships,” Dr. Muganda stated.
The proposed collaboration is expected to expand cooperation to university institutions, with a shared interest in enhancing operational efficiency, strengthening cooperation, and providing clearer definition of roles between Kenyan and Italian academic institutions.
