President Uhuru Kenyatta on Thursday issued the first press statement after holding the first round of talks with officials from the government of China which is hosting the second Belt and Road forum in Beijing.
According to the communique, President Kenyatta held bilateral talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Thursday after which they signed an agreement.
The only details of the agreement released by the Kenyan team indicated the opening up of Chinese market to avocados from Kenya.
According to the press statement, the Chinese market will absorb over 40 percent of Kenya’s avocado produce, making it one of the largest importers of the fruit.
“The signing of the protocol on sanitary and phytosanitary (an agreement relating to the health of plants, especially with respect to the rules of international trade)requirements for the export of frozen avocado was the last major hurdle for the Kenyan crop to be accepted in the highly regulated but lucrative Chinese market,” the statement read in part.
Avocado becomes the second farm produce from Kenya to access the expansive Chinese horticultural market after Stevia and will be followed by 13 other priority farm produce among them flowers, mangoes, French beans, peanut, vegetables, meat, herbs, bixa and macadamia.
Curiously, there was no mention of the Sh368 billion loan that President Kenyatta was poised to negotiate from the Chinese for the second phase of the SGR project (Naivasha to Mombasa).