Kenya: President Kenyatta in Ethiopia for a one-day state visit

By Samuel Ouma

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta on Tuesday left the country for neighboring Ethiopia for an official visit.

The plane carrying Kenyatta and his delegates landed at Bole International Airport in the afternoon. He was received by Ethiopia’s senior government officials led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

Mr. Kenyatta was accompanied by Cabinet Secretaries Raychelle Omamo (Foreign Affairs) and Joe Mucheru (ICT).

While in Ethiopia, he will discuss issues of mutual concern with Ethiopian government officials and witness the issuance of a telecommunications license to Safaricom.

Ethiopia Communication Authority last month awarded an operating license to a consortium led by Kenya's Safaricom and Japan's Sumitomo. The authority revealed that Vodacom, Vodafone, and British development finance agency CDC Group paid $850 million to bag the license.

The Ethiopian government tries to end monopoly in the communication sector and liberalize the country's economy. Ethio Telecom is the leading supplier of telecom services in the country.

The consortium will provide 4G and 5G internet services, and by 2023 a low-orbit satellite will be established to provide nationwide 4G coverage.

The license is set to create job opportunities and investments