•The three-day summit brings together Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
•Pope Francis will address the G7 summit and meet with the leaders of the United States, Ukraine, France and India, among others.
President William Ruto on Friday arrived in Apulia, Italy to attend the G7 2024 summit.
The three-day summit brings together Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Ruto is set to hold talks with Pope Francis on the sidelines of the summit where he will take part in leaders' talks on the new technology.
The Pope will address the G7 summit and meet different leaders. He is the first pope to participate in G7 discussions.
The G7, comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union, will address critical global issues on international cooperation.
Other African heads of States attending the summit include the President of Algeria, Egypt and Tunisia.
Also at the summit are Presidents Joe Biden of the United States, Mohammed bin Zayed (UAE), Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (Turkey), Kaïs Saïed and African Union Chair (Tunisia) and Mohamed Ould Ghazouani (Mauritania), who is also the African Union chairperson.
Others are Presidents Luis Inácio Lula da Silva (Brazil), Javier Milei (Argentina), Abdelmadjid Tebboune (Algeria), King Abdullah II (Jordan) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Mondi.
Also at the summit are United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Gutteres, African Development Bank President Akinwumi Adesina, World Bank President Ajay Banga, International Montero Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann.
G7 countries share common values such as political pluralism, liberal democracy and representative government.
At the G7 Summit, Ruto is expected to emphasise the importance of involving African countries in finding solutions to global challenges such as climate change, peace and security, including war and other conflicts.
He will also highlight Africa’s potential for green industrialisation, digital revolution and innovation and cite the huge renewable energy reserves in the continent.
Additionally, Ruto will outline AU reforms aimed at enhancing trade and development, peace and stability and greater global participation.
Come Sunday, Ruto will join other heads of state and government to discuss a common path towards peace in Ukraine in Burgenstock, Switzerland.
Ruto was invited to the Russia-Ukraine conflict summit after a meeting between the European Union delegation in Kenya and Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi.
The summit seeks to provide a platform for high-level discussions on topics of global interest such as nuclear security, food security freedom of navigation and humanitarian issues.