NAIROBI, July 5 (Xinhua) -- Kenya will expand outreach to its foreign partners in order to inject vitality in the quest to achieve growth agenda, regional integration and stability, a senior official said on Thursday.
Monica Juma, the Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs, said Kenya has retooled its diplomatic engagement with the rest of the world to focus on areas that promote socio-economic development as well as regional peace and security.
"The pursuit of regional integration, peace, security and the Big Four Agenda is wholly embedded in our foreign policy," Juma told journalists in Nairobi.
She revealed that the government has inked deals with several bilateral allies to hasten the achievement of the Big Four Agenda on manufacturing, food security, affordable housing and universal health care through financing and skills transfer.
"We have signed and concluded several memorandum of understanding with partners to drive the Big Four Agenda and are optimistic about the outcomes," said Juma.
"These agreements seek to create an enabling environment for investments in bankable projects like agro-processing and affordable housing," she added.
The East Africa nation in June hosted high-level foreign guests including regional leaders to discuss areas of mutual interests like trade, infrastructure, security and skills exchange.
Juma said regional leaders who attended an infrastructure summit in Nairobi on June 26 resolved to promote connectivity, energy supply, ICT and seamless cross-border trade as a means to achieve prosperity and peace.
"The leaders from this region also pledged to promote conflict resolution as a prerequisite to sustain economic development," Juma said.
