Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta will today become the first African leader to meet with US President Joe Biden at the White House since his election as President. A White House statement says the two leaders will discuss the strong bilateral relationship between the two countries and the need to bring transparency and accountability to domestic and international financial systems.
In an awkward moment for the White House, discussions around transparency and accountability in the global financial system comes after recent revelations in the Pandora Papers that Kenyatta and six of his family members were linked to millions of dollars kept in secret tax havens abroad. Beyond that, the two leaders will also tackle accelerating economic growth and climate change.
Kenya is reported to be the fifth-largest recipient of US aid with strong collaborations on capacitating Kenya’s military in tackling terrorism in the region.
Biden is also expected to pressure Kenyatta to use his country’s regional influence on the devolving situation in Tigray, Ethiopia after the US threatened to impose sanctions, including raising Addis Ababa’s tariff-free eligibility under the African Growth and Opportunity Act.
VIDEO: Kenyatta – Biden meeting to discuss Ethiopian crisis
