President Uhuru Kenyatta has almost tripled the 33 foreign trips that his predecessor Mwai Kibaki took during his 10-year reign.
When he traveled to DRC Congo on Thursday to witness the swearing-in of President Felix Tshisekedi, Uhuru was undertaking his 92nd foreign trip since he assumed office in April 2013.
Nation reports that President Kenyatta, who has been in office for the last 69 months, is now just seven trips shy of tripling Kibaki’s foreign trips during the latter's tenure as president.
Of the 92 trips, 49 have been State visits while the other 43 have been due to treaty obligations or courtesy calls – like the recent inauguration of President Tshisekedi.
While the public is concerned over the sharp increase in foreign trips taken by the president, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs claims that the visits have brought ‘immense benefits’ to Kenya.
In a recent interview, CS Monica Juma said the trips were more than necessary, adding that the country was at a better place globally.
She explained that the trips were key in building Kenya’s image and have helped market the country globally since the president is our topmost diplomat.
“Out of these presidential trips, we have moved from a country where some countries were defining us as one where they deal only by limited essential contacts, to a most sought after global leader.
"The president is invited to the most prestigious global club, the G7, in a row, to being invited and hosting three permanent members of the United Nations Security Council in a span of 10 days," stated Juma.
Many are concerned about the impact that President Kenyatta's foreign trips will have on Kenya's ballooning public debt, with projections showing that the country will be indebted to a tune of Kshs7.17 trillion by 2022.
