Kenyan President William Ruto on Tuesday received Hungarian Speaker of Parliament László Kövér, who is on an official visit to the east African country, Parliament’s press chief said. House of Representatives Speaker Moses Masika Wetangula and Foreign Minister Alfred Mutua also attended the meeting, Zoltán Szilágyi said in a statement.
President Ruto highly esteemed the Hungarian speaker’s first visit to Kenya, saying it would contribute to the deepening of relations between the two countries, the statement said. Kenya plans to open an embassy in Budapest in the near future, the president said, adding that this would further enhance the broadest possible bilateral cooperation.
Kövér told his partners that the Hungarian government is refreshing ties with sub-Saharan countries and seeking mutually beneficial relations with states in the region, including Kenya, “a highly important strategic partner” in east Africa. This ties in with Hungary’s Africa policy developed as part of its Southern Opening strategy announced in 2015 and the Africa strategy adopted in 2019, he noted. Hungary is striving to enhance economic relations in agriculture, and the health and water industries, as well as sharing Hungarian innovations and technological know-how, he added.
The sides also discussed global challenges affecting both countries and joint endeavours towards finding solutions to climate change, terrorism and migration, the statement said. Kövér has visited a training centre for youth in a Kangemi slum implemented as part of the Hungary Helps aid scheme. Here, young people learn key trades in modern classrooms and workshops built and operated with Hungarian support. The speaker also inaugurated the Kenyan office of Óbuda University. Here, knowledge gained by Kenyan students in Hungary is set to be used on the labour market.