Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta Monday (June 24th) praised the Kenyan Defence Forces co-operation with the Uganda People's Defence Force under the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and pushed for more regional integration.
"It is an honour for our men and women in uniform to be working together to bring peace to Somalia, which has faced war and conflict for the last 20 years," he said at a banquet held in his honour in Kampala, according to Kenya's Daily Nation.
Kenyatta said he is hopeful that Kenyan-Ugandan co-operation on security matters will extend to the fight against banditry along their shared border.
He also said East African Community economic integration can only be achieved through the reduction of trade barriers that hinder the movement of goods and workers. He urged member states to incorporate the Customs Union and the Common Market Protocol, which was passed to encourage free movement of labour, goods and services.
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Kenyatta held bilateral talks ahead of the Infrastructure Investment Summit, which is being held to discuss economic issues such as the construction of a railway line from Mombasa and reforms to enhance efficiency at the Mombasa port.