Kenya has defended hiring a firm belonging to Carlos Trujillo, an ally of United States President Donald Trump, to lobby and polish its image in the US.
Through a statement released on Thursday, August 28, Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi asserted that the deal, worth over Ksh300 million, was aligned with Kenya’s best interests in mind and done according to the law.
“The Government of the Republic of Kenya takes serious note of the misleading allegations published by a section of Kenyan media about Kenya’s engagement of a US-based public affairs and lobbying firm,” he stated.
“These reports are gravely inaccurate and lack a factual basis,” Mudavadi stated.
He argued that the move would bring guaranteed returns and was aimed at strengthening bilateral relations, safeguarding national interests, promoting tourism and trade, and amplifying Kenya’s voice on priority issues such as climate finance, security, and investment.
In official documents shared by the US Department of Justice dated August 8, the deal, which was not publicly announced, revealed that Kenya would pay over Ksh20 million ($175,000) a month for the next year to Continental Strategy LLC. The move sparked uproar from Kenyans who questioned the source of the funds, amidst reports that the money would be sourced from taxpayers' money.
Although the document did not reveal the exact services the firm will offer, Kenya’s selection of Trujillo’s firm could be attributed to his deep ties to Republican power circles.
The lobbying efforts would include preserving Kenya’s trade privileges, countering negative perceptions about Ruto’s administration, and navigating complex diplomatic tensions, especially after Kenya’s recent close relations with China.
While defending the deal, Mudavadi noted that the presence of the details of the deal on the DOJ website was testament to the transparency of the agreement.
Key to the deal was to accelerate conversations around the trade agenda, and secure the best possible outcome for Kenya’s trade with the US in the post-Africa Growth Opportunities Agenda (AGOA) era.
Another key agenda was to seek support for the Multinational Security Support Mission in Haiti, where Kenya is the lead nation for the peace initiative.
In addition, Mudavadi, who also serves as the Foreign Affairs CS, revealed that the deal was not unique to Kenya, noting that 17 countries globally had existing lobbying contracts with American firms worth more than $21 million (Ksh2.7 billion).
He added that this was not the first time Kenya had sought the services of a lobbying firm to advance the country’s foreign policy priorities.
“All previous governments in Kenya since 1964, including the Late Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, the Late Mzee Daniel Arap Moi, the Late Mwai Kibaki, and the retired President Uhuru Kenyatta, have engaged US and the United Kingdom (UK) lobbyists to leverage their expertise, critical statecraft connections, and geopolitical capital to realise our country’s national interests,” Mudavadi noted.
“As early as January 6, 1964, the Government of Kenya engaged the services of a Washington D.C.-based lobby firm. Between 1978 and 2001, the government of the day worked with more than ten US-based public affairs and lobby firms. From 2002 to 2011m about five such firms were engaged, while between 2012 and 2021, another five firms were similarly contracted,” he added.
