Inaugural meeting of the US-Kenya Trade and Investment Working Group

Inaugural meeting of the US-Kenya Trade and Investment Working Group
Published date:
Monday, 08 April 2019
Author:
USTR

Washington, D.C.—The United States and Kenya held the first meeting of the U.S.-Kenya Trade and Investment Working Group on April 3-8, 2019. 

The Working Group, established by President Donald J. Trump and President Uhuru Kenyatta, will explore ways to deepen the trade and investment ties between the two countries and lay the groundwork for a stronger future trade relationship.

The delegations were led by United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Peter Munya, Cabinet Secretary for Trade and Industry, and included representatives from a wide range of U.S. and Kenyan government departments and agencies.

Under the Working Group, the United States and Kenya initially agreed to work together in the following areas:

  • Maximize the remaining years of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA);
  • Pursue exploratory talks on a future bilateral trade and investment framework;
  • Strengthen commercial cooperation; and
  • Develop short-term solutions to reduce barriers to trade and investment.

Both countries agreed to hold the next Working Group meeting in Nairobi in June 2019.

Background:

Trade between the two countries stands at about $1 billion a year. Over 70 percent ($466 million in 2018) of Kenya’s exports to the United States entered under AGOA.

###

Share this article

View related news articles

USTR releases summaries from US-Kenya STIP negotiations

Consistent with the Biden-Harris Administration’s commitment to the highest levels of transparency in trade agreement negotiations, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) today released summaries of texts  ( Download the document alongside or in the Kenya-US STIP section) proposed by the U.S. side during the first negotiating round of the United States-Kenya Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP),...

23 May 2023

US boosts Kenya apparel industry with $55m in new trade deals

The US is giving Kenya $55 million for expansion of export processing zones in a move that will boost Nairobi’s apparel exports. US initiative Prosper Africa and the US Embassy announced the funding at the launch of the US-Kenya Business Roadshow held on April 25 in New York. The announcement was part of the commitments made by President Joe Biden at the US-Africa Leaders’ Summit last year. The funds will be channelled under USAid and...

29 April 2023

Why Africa, why Kenya? Remarks by US Ambassador to Kenya

Thank you, Scott, for the kind introduction. It is a pleasure to partner with the Prosper Africa initiative to drive investment in Kenya and countries across the African continent. I am happy to kick off our U.S.-Kenya Business Roadshow with all of you today, and to announce that we will be partnering with Prosper Africa throughout the year to engage businesses and investors in cities across the United States. Our next stops include San...

26 April 2023

Kenya-USA: Joint Statement on the third US-Kenya bilateral strategic dialogue [incl. VIDEO]

The text of the following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America and the Kenya on the occasion of U.S.-Kenya Bilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington, D.C. on April 24, 2023. Begin Text: The Governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Kenya held the third iteration of the U.S.-Kenya Bilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington, D.C. on April 24, 2023.  The U.S.-Kenya Strategic...

24 April 2023

Kenya, US advance talks on trade and investment partnership

Kenya and the United States of America have successfully completed the second round of negotiations on Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP), an agreement that aims to strengthen the two countries’ bilateral and investment relations. Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria said a lot of progress has been made in the negotiations, an indication that both states are committed to enhancing...

22 April 2023

US, Kenya teams open trade talks amid smallholder farmers’ protest

The administration of Kenya’s President William Ruto has begun the negotiation round of the proposed bilateral deal with the United States, which will replace the more-than-two-decade-old African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) amid protestations from smallholder farmers. The four-day talks, which kicked off in Nairobi on Monday, follow the round of conceptual discussions held in Washington between February 6 and 10. President Ruto’s...

17 April 2023

Kenya lobby wants agriculture excluded from Kenya-US trade talks

Stakeholders now want the government to exclude agriculture digital trade and anti-corruption in its Strategic Trade and Investments Partnership (STIP) with United States. Econews Africa, a pan African Research and Advocacy organisation and Kenya Small Scale Farmers Forum (KESSFF) say that Kenya will likely be the loser in the pact is signed in its current state. The STIP is a proposed agreement to act as a successor to the African Growth...

12 April 2023

Kenya upbeat of a trade deal with US by December

Kenya is hopeful of sealing a trade deal with the US by the end of this year, as the second round of physical meetings heads to Nairobi next month. This comes a mid increased interest in Kenya’s Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) by the US at this year’s American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Business Summit in Nairobi, a strategic platform for strengthening two-way trade and investment between the two countries,...

31 March 2023

US and Kenya to hold first negotiating round under their Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP)

The United States and Kenya will hold an in-person negotiating round under their Strategic Trade and Investment Partnership (STIP) in Kenya from April 17-20, 2023.  The United States delegation will be led by Assistant United States Trade Representative Connie Hamilton, and will include representatives from several other U.S. government agencies. Conceptual discussions under the STIP initiative were held in Washington, DC, on February...

15 March 2023

Pressure mounts on Biden over Trump-era Kenya-US trade deal

One of the biggest and most influential US business lobby groups in America and a top American lawmaker on trade have urged the Biden administration to fast-track the Trump-era trade talks with Kenya, piling pressure on Washington to conclude the negotiations. They also want Washington to dialogue with Nairobi on the basis of the original or initial proposed model of a free trade agreement with Kenya, which was initiated by Biden's...

15 March 2023

Kenya: Manufacturers push for 15-year AGOA extension

Kenyan manufacturers have asked the Trade ministry to request Washington to extend the existing duty- and quota-free access to the expansive US market window for another 15 years as the two countries prepare for talks over a long-term bilateral trade deal. The Kenya Association of Manufacturers, the sector lobby, argues that uncertainty over the more than two decades-Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) deal, which expires in two years, is...

02 March 2023