Cabinet Secretary Dr. Alfred Mutua met with the Members of the National Assembly Departmental Committees on Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Relations as well as Diaspora Affairs and Migrant Workers during a two-day training coducted by the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs in Mombasa County on July 27, 2023.
Dr. Mutua praised the Committee Members’ significant role in carrying out Kenya’s Foreign and Diaspora Policy Mandate and in managing the ministry’s operations.
“This gathering reinforces and supports His Excellency the President’s constitutional mandate as the primary driver of Kenya’s Foreign Policy. My appearance here today is, therefore, consistent with the President’s philosophy of a whole of Government approach to our Diplomacy and also as guided by the Bottom-Up Economic Model to Governance,” said Dr. Mutua.
Strategic issues deliberated on during the meeting included; Operalization of Foreign Service Academy; Effective Management of Kenya’s Diplomacy and Foreign Policy; Effective Administration of Kenya’s expanding Diplomatic Footprint and Leveraging Kenya’s Diaspora for effective National Development.
CS Mutua commended the Foreign Service Academy, formerly the Foreign Service Training Institute, for the admirable work it had done in supplying the necessary training and skills to Kenya’s Foreign Service officers, who in turn had proven their abilities in the international sphere.
“A group of diplomats from the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Somalia, South Sudan, Malawi, Liberia, and Mozambique are among the diplomats who have received training from the academy,” CS Mutua said, adding that, “We have signed MoUs with other countries, where our Academy will offer curriculum trainings in the region including Congo-Brazzaville, South Africa and Eritrea.
The Cabinet Secretary urged the committee members to support H.E. the President in pursuing Effective Management of Kenya’s Diplomacy and Foreign Policy by supporting his adoption of an audacious, robust, and resolute foreign policy arena on a global scale.
Dr. Mutua stated that the President’s concept and vision have changed the management and administration of our diplomacy through the Bottom-Up Economic Model on issues relating to Kenya’s expanding diplomatic footprint.
“The Ministry remains committed to utilizing Kenya’s diplomatic footprint to identify markets for Kenyan goods and services, consistent with the Bottom-Up Economic Model, while also advancing and matching the President’s bold international vision for Kenya’s socioeconomic advancement,” the CS stated.
“Key national asset in the execution of Kenya’s Foreign Policy Objectives is the scale and breath of our diplomatic missions. In this respect, the Ministry remains determined to leverage Kenya’s diplomatic footprint to identify markets for Kenyan goods and services, consistent with the Bottom-Up Economic Model,” said Dr. Mutua
He emphasized that the ministry has created a website for the diaspora that offers essential links to employment opportunities overseas in order to effectively harness Kenya’s diaspora for national development.
The CS underscored that, this would ensure that Kenyans are aware, connected, and well-equipped with resources when it comes to reliable information on jobs abroad, He highlighted that this complements the ministry’s effort to use diaspora networks as intermediaries to find opportunities for Kenyans living overseas. By doing this, Kenyans would have access to a wide range of reputable and interesting occupations.
Dr. Mutua reaffirmed Kenya’s dedication to maintaining regional stability and security as the cornerstone of Kenyans’ economic empowerment. He underlined that a prosperous region is one that can trade and permit the free flow of people and resources across international borders.
He urged the National Assembly to continue to play a key role in achieving the nation’s foreign policy goal.