President William Ruto will host Guinea Bissau President Umaro Sissoco Embaló at the start of his state visit to Kenya on Saturday.
The President will receive his counterpart at State House Nairobi, hours after completing a five-day tour of the Western Kenya region.
The official military reception of President Embaló will happen on Saturday morning with the visiting head of state expected to receive high honours.
Embaló's state visit comes nearly a year after President Ruto toured Guinea Bissau for a three-day state visit last April.
During the visit, Ruto held bilateral talks with President Embalóto enhance trade relations and strengthen private sector participation in agriculture, manufacturing and technology transfer.
The visit also focused on strengthening diplomatic and socio-economic relations.
A dispatch from State House last year said Kenya and Guinea-Bissau agreed to implement far-reaching policies to boost trade between the two countries.
President Ruto said that while the trade volume between the two countries was low, there was potential for improvement.
He cited the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement which is poised to enhance commerce.
"Kenya and Guinea-Bissau are keen on implementing the Memorandum of Understanding that established a Joint Commission for Cooperation (JCC) signed in 2022,'' Ruto said then.
He explained that enhanced collaboration between the private sectors of both nations would significantly boost trade volumes.
He made the remarks last April during a press briefing following bilateral talks with his counterpart Embaló.
President Ruto was decorated with Guinea-Bissau’s highest medal by President Embaló at the presidential palace.
He said the JCC would facilitate cooperation in areas of mutual interest, including security, agriculture and livestock, fisheries and the blue economy, as well as environment and forestry.
President Ruto pledged to initiate direct flights between the two countries.
He noted that this will bolster trade and strengthen people-to-people cooperation.
In September last year, Ruto met Embaló in Beijing, as he intensified Raila Odinga's African Union Commission chairperson campaigns.
Raila's AUC bid is likely to feature in the State House talks between Ruto and Embaló on Saturday.
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