US President Barack Obama will tackle hard issues that face the Jubilee administration, some likely to stoke controversy, according to a brief he gave at the White House.
Although Obama did not specify if he would address the rights of homosexuals matter—that has stirred varied outrage locally—the broad range of subjects in his agenda could allow him to plunge into the thorny topic.
The US President on Wednesday spelt out the agenda of his upcoming visit, saying it would focus on counter-terrorism, development, corruption and democracy issues.
He is likely to address the issues once or separately, when he addresses a joint Parliament sitting and when he meets President Uhuru Kenyatta at State House during the trip expected to last three days. Obama said priority would be on terrorism that has affected the East African region from Somalia-based al Shabaab terror group.
“Also in focus are modalities to continue encouraging democracy and reduction of corruption in Kenya, issue that sometimes have held back this incredibly gifted and blessed country,” he said.
Saying the Kenyan visit would be symbolic to him, Obama noted that Kenya and Sub-Saharan Africa in general are strong partners of the US and that he hopes to deliver a message of building progress. “My hope is that we can deliver a message that the US is a strong partner not just for Kenya, but for sub-Saharan Africa,” he said.
Key in Obama’s itinerary is the Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) that has spurred hope and optimism that Kenya would gain immensely in all sectors of the economy, in addition to exchange of high-level views and ideas between participants, who include global business leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators.
Just a week to his visit, the US President said he is optimistic to deliver a message of building progress that has been made. “(We can) build on the progress that’s been made around issues of health and education; focus on counter-terrorism issues that are important in East Africa because of al Shabaab and some of the tragedies that have happened inside of Kenya,” he said.
Obama was responding to a question from journalist during a press conference at White House on Wednesday, when he was asked how it felt visiting ‘his father’s homeland as US President’. He acknowledged the symbolic nature of his visit to Kenya even as he said coming as a private citizen would probably have been more meaningful to him than as President.
“With respect to the visiting Kenya, it is obviously something I am looking forward to...I will be honest with you, visiting Kenya as a private citizen is probably more meaningful to me than visiting as President because I can actually get outside of a hotel room or a conference centre,” he said.
Meanwhile, the White House has invited a contingent of American lawmakers, prominent members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) to accompany him for the Kenya and Ethiopia tour.
They include Representatives Karen Bass (Democratic, California), Cedric Richmond (Democratic, Lousiana), GK Butterfield (Democratic, North Carolina), Charlie Rangel (Democratic, New York) and Emanuel Cleaver (Democratic, Missouri).
Butterfield was quoted as saying he planned to use the trip to stress to Kenyan and Ethiopian officials the Congress’ commitment to them as trade, national security and diplomatic partners.
“Kenya is a strategic partner and they have some unique challenges and certainly Ethiopia does too. They need to be reassured that America is an ally,” Butterfield, who chairs the CBC, told politico.com.
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