NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 19 — Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Amb. Macharia Kamau on Friday held talks with China’s newly appointed Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa, Amb Xue Bing, as he commenced his inaugural visit to the region.
Amb. Kamau commended China for making the appointment following an undertaking by the country’s Foreign Minister, Amb. Wang Yi, during a visit to Kenya in January.
“The Principal Secretary welcomed China’s move to appoint a special envoy to the horn of Africa noting the initiative is timely as it will add impetus to the efforts by various partners to find lasting solutions to the peace and security threats in the horn of Africa region,” the Foreign Office said in a note following the talks.
Xue is also set to hold talks with President Uhuru Kenyatta on March 21 and also meet Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amb. Raychelle Omamo.
His meeting with Amb. Kamau was centered on peace and security in the region.
“The Special Envoy will also meet the Principal Secretary for Foreign Affairs Amb. Macharia Kamau, on Friday 18th March and thereafter engage and consult other stakeholders and practitioners of Peace and security,” MFA said in an earlier statement detailing Xue’s planned engagements.
During his visit in January, Amb Wang announced that Beijing would appoint a Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa, “whose suggested brief includes seeking to understand the region better and work jointly with Horn countries to convene and deliberate on the nexus between peace, stability and development,” MFA recalled.
Prior to Xue’s appointment as Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa, Xue previously served at the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, Embassy of China in Fiji, Embassy of China in New Zealand, Consulate General of China in Los Angeles, Embassy of China in Kenya and Embassy of China in Australia.
From 2014 to 2016, he was the Consul-General of China in Toronto. He was the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the People’s Republic of China to the Independent State of Papua New Guinea from 2016 to 2021.
Kenya’s Foreign Office said Xue’s visit will “build on existing initiatives and efforts towards finding solutions to the challenges facing the region including conflict and displacements and climate variances that need humanitarian assistance.”
