BUDAPEST, March 12 (NNN-KBC) — Kenya and Hungary have signed two major Memoranda of Understanding in the education and agricultural sectors, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has said.
He said the two MoUs will promote bilateral partnerships in the fields of education and agriculture and further open up new avenues for collaboration in these areas and many others.
He said Kenya and Hungary are further cementing their bilateral relations that date back to more than 60 years owing to the enormous potential and arising opportunities.
Speaking during the signing of the agreements with Péter Szijjártó, Hungary’s minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, in Budapest, Mudavadi, said Hungary was an important partner to Kenya in the Education sector.
“I take this opportunity to appreciate the government of Hungary for the 200 scholarships offered to Kenyan Students annually by the through the Stipendium Hungaricum Programme. These scholarships have enhanced our people-to-people cooperation and have revitalized substantial positive transformations across multiple sectors of our economies,” he said.
On agriculture, Mudavadi said that together with his Hungarian counterpart, they had agreed to work together on the exchange of expertise and best agricultural practices to enhance agricultural productivity in both our countries.
He said already the Hungarian government had established a Demo Farm in one of the agricultural productive county in Kenya, that is designed to showcase Hungarian agricultural technology and innovation, and serves as a model for modern and sustainable farming practices.
“I am confident that once we implement the outcomes of the discussion we have had on this sector, we will witness higher levels of Foreign Direct Investment from our respective companies in diverse fields of our economy, especially in the agricultural value addition industries,” said Mudavadi.
He said Kenya is committed to establishing a resident diplomatic mission in Budapest in the near future to give impetus to the already existing diplomatic ties with Hungary.
“President William Ruto had agreed to the opening of the embassy in Budapest, and the Cabinet has already approved. What we are waiting for is budgetary allocation to kick-start the process,” he added.
He noted that Kenya and Hungary, through the mutual visits, have exchanged views on how to strengthen and consolidate the good relations that exist between our two countries.
“Our countries share a long-standing relationship that dates back to when our country gained independence in 1963. Hungary was the 6th country to establish a mission in Nairobi in 1964,” said the PCS.
During the meeting with the Minister, Mudavadi said that they had resolved to revitalize our relations in the energy sector in efforts of stepping up to strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity by prioritizing green growth while ensuring energy supply and sustainability.
“We have therefore resolved to implement the MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Training and Education of Atomic Industry on the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy that we signed during his visit to Nairobi early last year,” he said.
He said Kenya and Hungary had agreed to exchange capacity on the use of nuclear energy as an alternative source of clean renewable energy.
On the ICT, the Prime CS said they had agreed with Hungary to amplify relations in the sector, noting their area of priorities were on business, finance, and cloud mapping sectors in our countries.
He said that on the Multilateral front, they had agreed to work together within the auspices of the United Nations to address the global dialogue in financing for development, promotion of inclusivity and equality, as well as teaming up to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
“I had the opportunity to seek Hungary’s support in championing for a fair and just multilateral system with a more inclusive global financing architecture,” said Mudavadi.
On the issues of trade, the PCS said they had resolved to promote greater linkages between private sectors and business communities of the two countries in order to enhance the momentum in establishing trade partnership between our business persons.
“We have agreed to hold the next session of the Joint Trade and Economic Committee (JTEC) between our two countries before the end of this year. We have further agreed to expedite the conclusion of negotiations on the Agreement on Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investment between our countries and begin negotiations of an Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation,” said Mudavadi.
Szijjártó sad they had agreed to work together within the available instruments of the International Organizations to secure a peaceful future for those areas in our respective continents facing conflict and instability.
“Hungary and Kenya continue to urge all aggrieved parties to give a chance to diplomacy and dialogue as an alternate method for settlement of disputes,” said Szijjártó. — NNN-KBC
