Kenyan students studying at Beijing Jiaotong University on Tuesday, January 23, received a letter from Chinese President Xi Jinping outlining the growing friendship between the two countries.
In the letter, Xi Jinping remarked that China had not only transformed Kenya but the rest of the African continent.
In particular, Xi remarked that the Belt and Road Initiative, a brainchild of China, had opened up Kenya through multibillion infrastructure projects he termed as a road to happiness.
“You have witnessed and benefited from the China-Kenya and China-Africa friendship and cooperation, and you have helped build and spread the friendly cooperation between China and Kenya and between China and Africa," Xi Jinping told the Kenyan students.
The Chinese President gushed over the 700-kilometre Nairobi-Mombasa Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) as one of the fruits of the Road to Happiness project by China.
Xi Jinping urged the students upon graduation and returning to Kenya, to be good ambassadors of China.
The Kenyan natives were also urged to not only benefit from the professional knowledge that saw them relocate to China but also devote themselves to bilateral cooperation.
“Tell well stories of China-Africa friendship, and make greater contributions to the building of a high-level China-Africa community with a shared future," Xi requested the Kenyan students studying railway operations and management knowledge.
Xi Jinping’s letter came two days after Kenya revealed that it had paid a Ksh72 billion SGR loan and other infrastructure credit advanced to Kenya.
While the loans were acquired during former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s tenure, Treasury Principal Secretary Chris Kiptoo assured the nation that Kenya would not default on any of its debts.
Kenya's debt stands at Ksh11 trillion according to data from the Central Bank of Kenya. China accounts for approximately 64 per cent of the debt.
President William Ruto's administration is seeking to borrow an additional Ksh163 billion (USD1 billion) by mid 2024.
