Kenyan President William Ruto has signed a landmark $1 billion investment agreement with China during a five-day state visit aimed at deepening economic and strategic ties between Nairobi and Beijing. The deal marks a significant boost for Kenya’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) and strengthens the country’s role within China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The comprehensive package includes major new funding for infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing, and tourism, sectors that the Ruto administration has prioritized as key to accelerating job creation and national development.
According to Kenya’s Ministry of Investments, Trade and Industry, the newly inked agreements allocate $430 million to agriculture, including a large-scale irrigation and agro-industrial park project in Baringo County, spearheaded by Zonken Group, $320 million to manufacturing, featuring a $150 million construction investment with long-time Chinese contractor China Wu Yi, which has worked on various Kenyan road and housing projects, $230 million to tourism, led by the Hunan Conference Exhibition Group, which will establish a high-end eco-tourism and conference hub in Kenya, marking the firm’s first venture in Africa.
President Ruto called the deals “transformational,” citing their alignment with Kenya’s efforts to localize production, boost exports, and attract foreign exchange.
This visit is President Ruto’s third to China since taking office in 2022, underlining Nairobi’s pivot toward stronger engagement with Beijing amid shifting global geopolitical and economic alliances. The two countries also pledged to deepen cooperation on digital economy, green energy, education exchange, and trade facilitation. The Chinese government reaffirmed Kenya’s status as a strategic partner in Africa and applauded the country’s consistent support of BRI goals since joining in 2017.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated, “President Ruto’s visit is not just symbolic but a reaffirmation of mutual trust and a shared commitment to people-centered development.”
In the coming months, Kenya is expected to roll out a national monitoring framework to ensure the timely implementation of the signed deals. Joint oversight committees from both countries will track progress, while Kenyan authorities are set to launch localized stakeholder forums to integrate community voices into the rollout of the projects.
President Ruto concluded the Beijing leg of his tour with a visit to several Chinese high-tech industrial parks and a call for more technology transfer and skills training partnerships to empower Kenyan youth. “As Kenya advances on its development journey, China remains not just a partner but a friend in progress,” Ruto declared.
