Kenya, US Officially Launch Free Trade Talk

President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday 8, July 2020 witnessed the launch of the Kenya-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations at State House, Nairobi.

Speaking after the deliberations, the Cabinet Secretary for Industrialization, Trade and Enterprise Development, Betty Maina, said the Agreement, which is the first of its kind in SubSaharan Africa, is expected to provide Kenya with continued duty-free access into the US market even after the lapse of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) in September 2025.

“Kenya concluded and launched the Export Strategy two years ago. We have reviewed products that we can promote to the US market, and such products include textiles and apparel, tea, coffee, and fish products among others. We estimate that if we can only capture 5 percent of the US market for these products, we could increase our export revenue by more than Kshs. 2 trillion,” Betty Maina added.

In February, US President Donald Trump announced the United States intends to initiate trade agreement negotiations with Kenya after the meeting held at the White House with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta.

“We look forward to negotiating and concluding a comprehensive, high-standard agreement with Kenya that can serve as a model for additional agreements across Africa,” U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a joint statement with Kenyan Trade Secretary Betty Maina.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and U.S. officials have said their deal doesn’t seek to disintegrate broader pacts. “We believe this agreement with Kenya will complement Africa’s regional integration efforts,” Lighthizer said.

“Increasing and sustaining” Kenyan exports to the U.S. requires a predictable trade arrangement. Kenya is also keen to attract U.S. investments to create more jobs at home, Ms, Maina said in the statement.