United States Trade Representative Cathrine Tai on Monday confirmed the country’s decision to prioritise its labour agreement deals with Kenya.
In a report submitted to a Committee in the House of Representatives, the US seeks to adjust its trade agreement policies, a move aimed at stemming China's growing influence in the global geopolitical space.
The Trade Representative noted that firming up the country’s trade policies would go hand in hand with building higher labour standards in the ongoing trade negotiations with Kenya.
According to Tai, all these measures were mainly aimed at dealing with threats posed by China's trade and economic policies.
It was noted that China's trade policies were causing dependencies and vulnerabilities in multiple sectors, harming US workers and businesses.
The report by Tai alleged that China's dominance posed a real threat to the United State's supply chains, necessitating a need for the review of the latter's trade policies.
The United States first announced its trade agreement with Kenya in 2022. The agreement centred around 9 crucial areas including; labour provision, agriculture and the fight against corruption.
Other areas include; digital trade, climate change action and environmental protection. The two countries have been holding frequent meetings to iron out the deal's finer details.
Notably, the deal provides that the 2 countries will commit to 4 core international labour standards including; freedom of association and collective bargaining.
Other agreements under the labour provisions include; the elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour, the effective abolition of child labour and the elimination of discrimination for employment and occupation.
The latest development comes a month before President William Ruto visits the United States, in a meeting scheduled for May 23.
According to reports, the meeting will focus on ways to bolster our cooperation in various areas including; people-to-people ties, trade and investment
This comes even as the US and Kenya continue to finalise talks ahead of the much anticipated deployment of officers to Haiti.
