NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 21 — Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi is back in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, for the 36th Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) between Kenya and Ethiopia.
The meeting comes a week after Mudavadi, who doubles up as the Foreign Affairs Minister, attended the 44th ordinary session of the African Union’s Executive Council of Foreign Affairs Ministers in Addis Ababa.
The Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs said Wednesday that Mudavadi and his Ethiopian counterpart, Taye Selassie, will co-chair the session.
The Foreign Office said the meeting will yield several agreements aimed at further strengthening the bilateral relations between the two countries.
“Mudavadi was received at the Airport by Kenya’s ambassador to Ethiopia, Ambassador George Orina, and Director General Africa Affairs, Ambassador Fisseh Shawu (Ethiopia),” Kenya’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday.
The Ethiopia-Kenya JMC had stalled for seven years.
Ethiopia is one of Kenya’s key allies in trade, energy, and regional security.
The 2024 report from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) revealed that Kenya imported 917.8 million kilowatt-hours (KWh) of power from Ethiopia in 2023.
The figure accounts for almost three-fourths of Kenya’s total imported power in 2023, up from 12.61 million KWh in 2022.
eTA fee exemption
The talks also come against the backdrop of Kenya’s decision to exempt Ethiopians from the USD30 fee paid by foreigners seeking Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) to enter the country.
On Monday, Ethiopia’s Ambassador to Kenya, Bacha Debele Buta, expressed gratitude towards the decision, praising the administration of President William Ruto for the move.
“My heartfelt thanks and appreciation to the Government of Kenya for its prompt response and [the] kind decision to remove Ethiopian citizens from the Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) related electronic payment requirement,” he stated on Monday.
The announcement came amid concerns over the new visa regime and its implications on the decades-long visa-free arrangement between Kenya and Ethiopia which allows citizens of both countries to travel without the requirement of procuring a visa.
President Ruto announced Kenya’s transition to a “visa-free” arrangement on December 12, 2023, with the eTA requirement, applicable to all foreigners alike, taking effect on January 1, 2024.
