London; UK: President Uhuru Kenyatta has asked Kenyans in the Diaspora to support African Governments in propagating a new story of the continent as the new frontier of development and prosperity.
The President urged the Kenyan Diaspora to be good ambassadors not only of their country but also the African continent as a whole.
Uhuru regretted that Africa has continued to be portrayed
negatively in major media outlets in the world as a hopeless continent
bedevilled by poverty, conflicts and disease.
Saying that all countries in the world experience challenges, the Head of State noted that despite a history of difficulties, Africa is now a rising continent and a place of hope and opportunity.
Speaking during the meeting, Lamu Senator Abu Chiaba said there are many opportunities for investments that the Kenyan Diaspora should exploit.
He cited the Lamu Port South Sudan and Ethiopia Transport corridor as a project that has road, rail, refinery and pipeline components that offer lucrative investment opportunities.
On his part, the Kenyan High Commissioner to UK Ambassador Ephraim Ngare emphasised the need to mainstream the Diaspora in the development process adding that Kenyans living abroad were keen on investing back home.
He noted that there are presently about 3 million Kenyans living abroad and remitting approximately US Dollars 891 million each year into the country.
“To tap this huge potential for development, there is a need to put in place the necessary infrastructures, including innovative financial instruments, that will enable the Kenyan Diaspora invest in their own development as well as the development of their country,” said Ambassador Kiarie.
Speaking on behalf of the Diaspora during the meeting, Councillor Wanjiru Kangethe of the Parsoles ward in the Borough of Backing & Dagenham and Sam Ochieng, the former chair of the UK Kenyan Diaspora, urged the Government to step up the necessary measures that will enable the Kenyan Diaspora to fully participate in the next General elections.
Present during the meeting were the Attorney General Githu Muigai and Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Thuita Mwangi among other senior government officials.
Source:diasporamessenger.com
