President William Ruto, on Thursday, October 9, made some bold resolutions in his first remarks as the new Chairperson of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Authority, pledging to spearhead a digital transformation agenda.
Ruto spoke at the 24th COMESA Summit at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), where he promised to prioritise full digitalisation of trade facilitation, describing it as essential for building sustainable and inclusive growth across the bloc.
COMESA’s Authority, which consists of heads of state from member countries, is the highest decision-making body in the organisation.
In his acceptance speech, the Head of State stressed the need for Africa to shift from being a passive consumer of technology to becoming a producer and exporter of digital solutions.
“The time has come for us to shape our own economic destiny,” Ruto declared as he pointed to Kenya’s own innovation success story, the mobile money platform M-PESA.
The President's immediate promise to COMESA member states is to champion the rollout of a digital highway which would cover the entire region of member states.
He also urged COMESA countries to align their digital rules, noting that inconsistent policies were blocking trade across the region.
On AI, Ruto committed to pushing for the integration of artificial intelligence, automation and smart logistics systems to streamline the region's trade corridors and manufacturing processes. The digital tools, according to Ruto, would be crucial for COMESA countries to add value to their mineral and agricultural resources instead of simply exporting them as raw materials.
“We must now leap into the Fourth Industrial Revolution – Industry 4.0 – by integrating automation, artificial intelligence, and advanced manufacturing. This is how we will transform our rich mineral and agricultural resources into high-value finished products within COMESA, creating quality jobs, boosting incomes, and expanding our economies," Ruto added.
To show commitment to digital and financial ambitions, Ruto announced that Kenya was increasing its investment in COMESA's financial arm, the Trade and Development Bank, by an additional USD 100 million (about Ksh13 billion at the current exchange rate).
What the New COMESA Chairmanship Means for Kenya
With Ruto as the new COMESA chair, Kenya is now in a strategic position to shape the regional trade and economic integration agenda from 2026. This essentially means Kenya can influence key policy decisions around trade, infrastructure development and investment priorities across Eastern and Southern Africa.
This influence is particularly key for Kenyan businesses, since it could potentially open up new opportunities to tap into COMESA's 640-million-person market, particularly if Ruto's digitisation agenda gains momentum.
Ruto also serves as the current chairman of the East African Community, making him and Kenya a crucial player in East, Central and Southern Africa.
