President William Ruto has dismissed criticism over his frequent foreign trips, insisting that his overseas visits are essential for strengthening international partnerships and advancing Kenya’s interests on the global stage.
Speaking in Mombasa at his first public event since jetting in from France on Thursday, the president stated that Kenyans should be proud of how the country has attracted much global attention in recent years, to the extent of hosting international events and him being invited to represent other African countries in international forums.
President Ruto was in France to attend the G7 summit this week, before his arrival in Mombasa to officially close the 11th Our Ocean Conference. This was the first time that the conference was held in Africa.
Last month, French President Emmanuel Macron was in Nairobi to co-host and attend the Africa Forward Summit. Previous Africa-France summits had been held either in France or in predominantly Francophone African countries.
“All these things aren’t happening by jokes or accident. They’re planned. It’s because the whole world respects the work that we’re doing as a government and as the people of Kenya,” said Dr Ruto.
He added, “I continue calling upon my fellow Kenyans to believe in ourselves, let’s believe in our nation and stop the propaganda, hatred and abuses that are useless. Let’s have plans and policies, that’s how we’ll be respected.”
The Head of State explained that his inclusion at the G7 Summit was to represent Africa, and the discussion was about new partnerships and how the continent can do things differently for its prosperity.
According to him, he made it clear to the Summit that going forward, the conversations and engagements by Africa will no longer be on dependency but sovereign equality.
The G7 (Group of Seven) is an informal forum of seven of the world’s largest advanced economies that meet to discuss global economic, political, and security issues. It consists of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
In addition, the European Union participates in G7 meetings but is not counted as one of the seven members.
“The era of aid and assistance has run its course. Going forward it has to be about partnerships. We will reject any engagement that amounts to extraction. It’s going to be about investments that create job, values and builds a win-win approach,” he said.
Dr Ruto added that with its massive natural resources and human workforce, the continent can drive global prosperity if it is treated as an equal partner.
“There’s a need to eliminate all the barriers to access new ways of financing this continent, not in a way of treating Africa special. It is in pursuit of being treated equally and that’s not too much to ask,” he added.
The Our Ocean Conference, which took place from Tuesday, June 16, which was also attended by Zanzibar President Hussein Ali Mwinyi, brought together ministers, policymakers, scientists, business leaders and environmental advocates from around the world.
According to Dr Ruto, over 300 commitments with a combined value of about $6.4 billion (Sh825.6 billion) we made, with Kenya making 50 commitments worth $1.1 billion (141.9 billion) in support of the Blue Economy.
“Delivered in full, these commitments will expand our marine protected areas, restore our fisheries, combat climate change, reduce pollution, build sustainable blue economies, and strengthen maritime security, ultimately growing our shared ocean wealth,” he stated.
The conference focused on six key pillars; marine protected areas, sustainable fisheries, marine pollution, sustainable blue economy, the ocean-climate nexus and maritime security.
Among the notable outcomes were commitments to expand marine protected areas to achieve the global target of conserving 30 per cent of oceans by 2030, strengthen measures against illegal fishing and promote circular economy models to tackle marine pollution.
Delegates also emphasised nature-based solutions such as mangrove restoration and blue carbon projects to enhance climate resilience and support coastal communities.
The 12th Our Ocean Conference will be hosted by canada in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in spring 2027.
Through a video address, Canada’s Minister of Fisheries Joanne Thompson said the next forum would build on commitments made in Kenya and work with global partners to transform ambition into measurable outcomes.
