Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora affairs Dr. Musalia Mudavadi has urged leaders of both Kenya and Uganda to urgently address issues on Non-Tariff Barriers that have continued to hamper cross-border trade between the two countries.
Speaking at the opening of the 2nd session of the Joint Ministeral Commission for Cooperation in Kampala today, Mudavadi has urged delegates to ensure their discussions reach a conclusive position to enable the augmentation of bilateral trade.
He noted that over the last two days, the two countries Principal Secretaries and Senior Officials have diligently undertaken a review of the commitments agreed during the Inaugural Joint Ministerial Commission held in Nairobi in March 2019.
Mudavadi thus urges them to assess and consolidate the gains made in the implementation of agreed resolutions.
He notes that this bilateral exercise is significantly important as it precedes the official State Visit by president Museveni, to Kenya from tomorrow May 15th – 17th.
“It is also imperative to address other outstanding issues relating to, immigration, boundary reaffirmation which has progressed at a slow pace due to challenges related to funding thereby impacting on the programme of action, and other cross border matters are addressed at the earliest. I am confident we shall reach agreement on these important instruments for enhancing our cooperation”, he told delegates in Kampala.
“It is incumbent upon us to come up with an Action Plan that has a realistic time frame and an inbuilt monitoring and evaluation mechanism to guide the implementation process. Our respective Diplomatic Missions and Foreign Affairs Ministries will be entrusted to engage in regular consultations regarding the implementation of all agreed decisions”, he added.
Dr Mudavadi also expressed gratitude to the Government of Uganda for the release of 32 Turkana herdsmen that were arrested on 24th of April 2023 for being in possession of illegal firearms.
“The gesture by the Government of the Republic of Uganda underscores commitment in building our relations to deeper levels”, he stated.
