WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. government is engaging in robust talks with Kenya as part of its drive to expand equitable and inclusive U.S. trade investment on the African continent, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Sarah Bianchi said on Tuesday.
Bianchi told a trade conference that USTR would have more to say on Kenya in coming weeks, but gave no details.
“We have been doing a lot of robust engagement with Kenya. We’re exploring ways to deepen our trade and investment relationship there,” she said. “We’ll have more to say on Kenya in the coming weeks, but we do want to keep a really deep engagement going.”
U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai met virtually in December with Kenya’s trade minister, Betty Maina, and underscored the Biden administration’s commitment to deepening the bilateral relationship.
The Biden administration in July had unveiled a new push to expand business ties between U.S. companies and Africa, with a focus on clean energy, health, agribusiness and transportation infrastructure on the continent.
The previous administration had launched talks with Nairobi on a bilateral free trade agreement, but those plans have been on ice until USTR completes a policy review.
(Reporting by Andrea Shalal and David LawderEditing by Tomasz Janowski)
