#Kenyan President Ruto

[dailyworldecho]

[theleadersglobe]

Kenya’s President to Inaugurate Prestigious Zimbabwe Trade Fair

In a significant announcement, the Information, Publicity, and Broadcasting Services Minister, Jenfan Muswere, revealed that President William Ruto of Kenya will officially open the 2024 Zimbabwe International Trade Fair (ZITF). This landmark event is set to take place from April 23 to April 27 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second-largest city. This year’s fair, which is the 64th edition, promises to be a pivotal gathering under the banner of “Innovation: The Catalyst for Industrialisation and Trade,” focusing on fostering industrial growth and expanding trade through innovative practices.

Read More:(https://theleadersglobe.com/business/kenyas-president-to-inaugurate-prestigious-zimbabwe-trade-fair/)

[wanguya-muturi-jesse]

Ruto the 5th President of Kenya 🇰🇪

[thecagedbird-sings]

The Olive Branch

Counsel to President Ruto (your responsibility is the greatest, sir) and the Kenya Kwanza government during this tumultuous time occasioned by maandamano...

The Olive Branch Lace not an olive branch With venom and poison Lace it not With the spit of words Unkind and haughty Lace it not With foul breath Ferrying untruths and hubris Lace it not with the sound Of ignorance and conceit It is an olive branch Your suspicions Swallow Your trepidations Voice not Your fear Be not seen wearing Your mettle Hang on the neck like a bishop’s crucifix Your…

[politicoscope]

Kenyans Can Now Visit South Africa Visa-Free

Kenyans Can Now Visit South Africa Visa-Free

The presidents of South Africa and Kenya said Wednesday they have resolved a long-standing visa dispute and Kenyans will be able to visit South Africa visa-free for up to 90 days in a calendar year. South Africans already get free visas on arrival in Kenya, while Kenyans were charged and required to provide proof of sufficient funds and return flight tickets. The new agreement is set to take…

[kropotkindersurprise]

July 16, 2024 - A Kenyan protester throws back a tear gas grenade, that was shot at them by riot police without provocation, smoking the cops out of their truck.

Kenyans have been protesting proposed neo-liberal tax reforms for weeks. After a brutal crackdown by police killed at least 50 people the protesters are now in the streets demanding justice for the murdered, and for the right-wing president Ruto to step down. [video]

[zvaigzdelasas]

U.S. news reports suggest that the aircraft contained civilian contractors and supplies to pave the way for the deployment of a Kenyan-led security mission to Haiti, which is expected to begin any day now.

But no one has informed Haitians who or what was on board. Even the members of Haiti’s new transitional government told me that they did not know precisely what the United States was flying into the country. Although the Haitian members of the presidential council have met with Kenyan and Haitian officials to discuss the force, they said they have not provided input to U.S. officials. Aides to newly installed Prime Minister Garry Conille confirmed that he has had no say on decisions related to the mission. [...]

The truth is that the United States outsourced the Haiti mission to Kenya. U.S. President Joe Biden has admitted as much: “We concluded that for the United States to deploy forces in the hemisphere just raises all kinds of questions that can be easily misrepresented about what we’re trying to do,” Biden said in May during a news conference with Kenyan President William Ruto, adding, “So, we set out to find a partner or partners who would lead the effort that we would participate in.”

As that partner, Kenya will “lead” troops from countries that will likely include Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Antigua and Barbuda. But in practice, it is “a U.S.-led mission with multiple actors,” congressional aides admitted to the Miami Herald. The U.S. Defense Department has pledged $200 million to help the mission, and it is clear from its preparations in Haiti—where some U.S. military officers and many U.S. private contractors are building a base and medical facility—that defense officials from the United States are the ones making the decisions.[...]

Haiti’s gangs do not expect the multinational force to end their operations forever. Jimmy Chérizier, who heads the gang alliance in Port-au-Prince, has said that he predicts an extended period of bloodshed, but also that eventually international forces will tire and leave. He anticipates that his gangs will endure.

13 Jun 24

[fuckyeahmarxismleninism]

Stand in solidarity with Booker Ngesa Omole, Communist Party of Kenya National Vice Chairperson

The Communist Party of Kenya (CPK) has strongly denounced what it describes as “the illegal and politically motivated arrest of our National Vice Chairperson, Booker Ngesa Omole,” on September 7, 2024.

Posting on X (formerly Twitter), the CPK explains that: “Booker was on an official assignment for the Communist Party of Kenya, en route to China, a country with which Kenya has ongoing diplomatic relations. In a shocking display of abuse of power, Booker was arrested aboard a Qatar Airways flight bound for Beijing via Doha. The immigration police at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) acted on a stop order with no basis in law.”

This action by the Kenyan authorities in forcibly preventing one of its citizens from travelling to China on an official invitation is particularly outrageous and provocative as it occurs in the immediate aftermath of President William Ruto’s own visit to China to attend the summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) and serves to expose the venal and duplicitous nature of the Kenyan comprador bourgeoisie.

[labutansa]

“Sorry, Haiti, for U.S.-Pushed Kenyan Cop Mission”

via african_stream

“In this clip, Kiritu Chege from Kenya's Communist Party shares the sentiments of many Kenyans regarding Nairobi's controversial police deployment Haiti. Firstly, he apologises to the island nation and secondly, he says Washington twisted Kenya's arm. It did this because it knows it can no longer credibly go in itself to restore order in Haiti. The US needed a ‘Black face.’ And Kenyan president William Ruto was happy to provide one, even going so far as to ignore his own High Court's ruling that the deployment of Kenyan police to Haiti to tackle gang violence there would be unconstitutional. Washington pledged $300 million for the mission but deployed Kenyan officers have reportedly yet to receive their salaries.”

[mariacallous]

AI projects like OpenAI’s ChatGPT get part of their savvy from some of the lowest-paid workers in the tech industry—contractors often in poor countries paid small sums to correct chatbots and label images. On Wednesday, 97 African workers who do AI training work or online content moderation for companies like Meta and OpenAI published an open letter to President Biden, demanding that US tech companies stop “systemically abusing and exploiting African workers.”

Most of the letter’s signatories are from Kenya, a hub for tech outsourcing, whose president, William Ruto, is visiting the US this week. The workers allege that the practices of companies like Meta, OpenAI, and data provider Scale AI “amount to modern day slavery.” The companies did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A typical workday for African tech contractors, the letter says, involves “watching murder and beheadings, child abuse and rape, pornography and bestiality, often for more than 8 hours a day.” Pay is often less than $2 per hour, it says, and workers frequently end up with post-traumatic stress disorder, a well-documented issue among content moderators around the world.

The letter’s signatories say their work includes reviewing content on platforms like Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram, as well as labeling images and training chatbot responses for companies like OpenAI that are developing generative-AI technology. The workers are affiliated with the African Content Moderators Union, the first content moderators union on the continent, and a group founded by laid-off workers who previously trained AI technology for companies such as Scale AI, which sells datasets and data-labeling services to clients including OpenAI, Meta, and the US military. The letter was published on the site of the UK-based activist group Foxglove, which promotes tech-worker unions and equitable tech.

In March, the letter and news reports say, Scale AI abruptly banned people based in Kenya, Nigeria, and Pakistan from working on Remotasks, Scale AI’s platform for contract work. The letter says that these workers were cut off without notice and are “owed significant sums of unpaid wages.”

“When Remotasks shut down, it took our livelihoods out of our hands, the food out of our kitchens,” says Joan Kinyua, a member of the group of former Remotasks workers, in a statement to WIRED. “But Scale AI, the big company that ran the platform, gets away with it, because it’s based in San Francisco.”

Though the Biden administration has frequently described its approach to labor policy as “worker-centered.” The African workers’ letter argues that this has not extended to them, saying “we are treated as disposable.”

“You have the power to stop our exploitation by US companies, clean up this work and give us dignity and fair working conditions,” the letter says. “You can make sure there are good jobs for Kenyans too, not just Americans."

Tech contractors in Kenya have filed lawsuits in recent years alleging that tech-outsourcing companies and their US clients such as Meta have treated workers illegally. Wednesday’s letter demands that Biden make sure that US tech companies engage with overseas tech workers, comply with local laws, and stop union-busting practices. It also suggests that tech companies “be held accountable in the US courts for their unlawful operations aboard, in particular for their human rights and labor violations.”

The letter comes just over a year after 150 workers formed the African Content Moderators Union. Meta promptly laid off all of its nearly 300 Kenya-based content moderators, workers say, effectively busting the fledgling union. The company is currently facing three lawsuits from more than 180 Kenyan workers, demanding more humane working conditions, freedom to organize, and payment of unpaid wages.

“Everyone wants to see more jobs in Kenya,” Kauna Malgwi, a member of the African Content Moderators Union steering committee, says. “But not at any cost. All we are asking for is dignified, fairly paid work that is safe and secure.”

[reasonsforhope]

When William Ruto was sworn in as Kenya’s fifth president in September 2022, he used his inauguration speech to demand an end to humanity’s “addiction to fossil fuels” and reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to reach 100% clean energy by 2030. Kenya is not far off this target today.

In 2021, 81% of Kenya’s electricity generation came from the low carbon sources of geothermal, hydro, wind, and solar power. Over half of this low carbon electricity came from geothermal energy, which Kenya has in abundance. So much in fact, that excess geothermal energy is released during the night when electricity demand is low. Installed geothermal capacity in Kenya could be increased by at least eightfold, which could open opportunities for scaling up green manufacturing capacity or exporting excess electricity to neighbouring countries. 

Renewable rollouts have substantially improved energy access. In 2013, around 28% of Kenyans had access to electricity. By 2020, this had risen to over 71%. This was achieved as the population grew by over seven million over the same period, while the rate of urbanisation continued to gather pace. According to the World Bank, barely one million Kenyans had electricity in 1990 [which, back then, was approximately just 5% of the population]. 

Ruto’s words, and Kenya’s actions, are timely due to the backdrop they are made against. Amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the vacuum created in global energy markets, European leaders and multinational fossil fuel firms have launched a ‘dash for gas’ across Africa, where a raft of new oil and gas projects, as well as old ones, are being given the green light. At COP27, Ruto kicked back against the dash for gas, stating that “we [Kenya] have taken a position that as a country we are going green and we are well on course.”

-via Rapid Transition Alliance, November 17, 2022

[camillasgirl]

King Charles III and Queen Camilla will undertake a State Visit to Kenya

The visit will take place from Tuesday 31st October to Friday 3rd November 2023, and will celebrate the warm relationship between the two countries and the strong and dynamic partnership they continue to forge.

The visit is at the invitation of President Ruto and comes as Kenya prepares to celebrate 60 years of independence. His Majesty’s first visit to a Commonwealth nation as King is therefore to the country in which Queen Elizabeth II’s reign began, having acceded to the throne in Kenya in February 1952.

The King and Queen will visit Nairobi City County, Mombasa County and surrounding areas. Their Majesties’ programme will reflect the ways in which Kenya and the United Kingdom are working together, notably to boost mutual prosperity, tackle climate change, promote youth opportunity and employment, advance sustainable development and create a more stable and secure region.

During the visit, Their Majesties will meet President Ruto and the First Lady as well as and other members of the Kenyan Government, UN staff, CEOs, faith leaders, young people, future leaders and Kenyan Marines training with UK Royal Marines. The King will also attend an event to celebrate the life and work of the Nobel Laureate the late Professor Wangari Maathai, together with Wangari’s daughter, Wanjira Mathai.

The King and Queen’s programme will celebrate the close links between the British and Kenyan people in areas such as the creative arts, technology, enterprise, education and innovation. The visit will also acknowledge the more painful aspects of the UK and Kenya’s shared history, including the Emergency (1952-1960). His Majesty will take time during the visit to deepen his understanding of the wrongs suffered in this period by the people of Kenya. Together, Their Majesties will tour a new museum dedicated to Kenya’s history and will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior at Uhuru Gardens, as well as visiting the site of the declaration of Kenya’s independence in 1963.

The King and Queen’s programme also will include:

Their Majesties will be greeted in Nairobi with a ceremonial welcome at State House and will each attend bilateral meetings – The King with The President and The Queen with the First Lady, before The President hosts a State Banquet at State House.

His Majesty will visit the United Nations Office at Nairobi, to learn more about the work of UN Habitat and the UN Environment Programme. UNON is the only UN Headquarters in the Commonwealth.

His Majesty will attend a technology showcase, meeting Kenyan entrepreneurs who are driving forward innovation in the country’s tech sector. Kenya has the third largest start up eco-system in Africa.

His Majesty will host a reception focussed on Kenya’s young people and future leaders across development, trade, media, the creative arts and environmental conservation.

Their Majesties will visit a Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery, joining British and Kenyan military personnel in an act of Remembrance, before hearing about the Commission’s recent work to ensure all those who supported Britain’s efforts in both World Wars are commemorated.

The King and Queen will visit Nairobi National Park to witness the vital conservation work being undertaken by the Kenya Wildlife Service, which is integral to Kenya’s thriving tourism industry.

Her Majesty, Patron of the equine welfare charity Brooke, will hear how the charity is working with the Kenya Society for the Protection and Care of Animals to rescue donkeys at risk and promote their welfare.

The King, as Captain General of the Royal Marines, and The Queen, will visit Mtongwe Naval Base in Mombasa. There, Their Majesties will witness Kenyan Marines, trained by the Royal Marines, demonstrating a covert beach landing, showing defence collaboration in action.

The Queen will meet survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, learning how they are supported and sharing her own insights from working in this area.

The King will meet faith leaders from Mombasa’s diverse community, hearing how they are working together to promote harmony amongst the city’s population.

[politicoscope]

Ruto Rushes Soldiers to Eastern Congo to Calm Deadly Crisis

Ruto Rushes Soldiers to Eastern Congo to Calm Deadly Crisis

Kenya’s president said Wednesday that his country is sending more than 900 military personnel to eastern Congo to join a new regional force tasked with trying to calm deadly tensions fueled by armed groups. Kenyan President William Ruto called the mission “necessary and urgent” for regional security, and said he and Congo’s president had agreed on how Kenyan forces would work with Congolese and…