Italian President Sergio Mattarella will pay an official visit to Kenya next March.
This was announced by the Kenyan Presidency on the twitter profile of the State House in Nairobi, attributing to President William Ruto the first words announcing the visit, which will coincide with the meeting between the two heads of state. The announcement was made, as reported by State House itself, on the sidelines of a visit to State House in Nairobi with the Italian Ambassador Roberto Natali.
'Relations between Kenya and Italy will get a big boost next month when Italian President Sergio Mattarella visits the country,' reads the Kenyan presidency's social profile. 'President Ruto said the visit will enhance cooperation between the two nations.
Ruto added that the people of Kenya and Italy have a long and unique relationship, embodied by the presence of so many Italians in the Malindi area'.
The Kenyan president, since the beginning of his mandate as deputy of then leader Uhuru Kenyatta, has established excellent relations with Italy, visiting our country several times both for institutional meetings and for meetings with Italian entrepreneurs and companies.
On the Italian side, in June 2022, former Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio, made the last major visit by institutional representatives from Rome, verifying in person some of the Italian projects in the capital, while in addition to his predecessor Paolo Gentiloni who came to Kenya to launch, among other things, a scholarship programme for survivors of the massacre at Garissa University, in July 2015, the then Prime Minister Matteo Renzi stayed two days in Nairobi for bilateral talks with Kenyatta. Mattarella's schedule of meetings and visits has not yet been released. Confirmation from the Quirinale of William Ruto's words is also awaited.