Kenyan leader says trade, security talks top Obama's visit

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta said on Tuesday global war on terrorism and investment opportunities are top on his agenda during bilateral talks with U.S President Barack Obama who is due in Nairobi later this week.

Kenyatta told a news conference in Nairobi that he also expects to get insights on good governance and democracy which he said are the issues that bind Kenya and the U.S.

He said the bilateral talks to be held on Saturday will strengthen ties between Nairobi and Washington which he said has been cordial.

The Kenyan leader said the ongoing war against terrorism will top his discussions with President Obama on Saturday, saying investments can only thrive in a secure environment.

"My administration has led the war against them; their corrupt schemes will fail. Our country has endured the attacks of depraved, ideological criminals. We have fought them unrelentingly, and they know, as well as we do, that they will lose," he said.

U.S. President Obama is due in Nairobi on Friday for the 2015 Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES) which will he will co-host by President Uhuru Kenyatta.

The summit will bring together 1,500 entrepreneurs at all stages of business development with majority being Africans.

This is the first time the GES is being held in Africa, and officials said the selection of Kenya as a host is a major vote of confidence for the country in the wake of terror attacks that have rocked the nation.

Kenyatta said his government and partners have devoted great care to the summit's arrangements, adding that its work has been rewarded with commitments from 1,400 participants and a large delegation from America accompanying President Obama.

"It is an inspiration to note that of the 1400 delegates, a fifth will be Kenyans, and half African. In the days before the Summit, we will host a number of events so that our friends and visitors can prepare themselves for the big day," he added.

Kenyatta said the East African nation exports and imports from the U.S. rose to an all-time high of 300 million dollars in 2014 as the latter became the biggest source of goods for Kenya.

He stressed that the country has become a hub of commerce trade and tourism, stating that entrepreneurship has the power to transform people's lives for the better.

"By lowering cost of doing business, we will be able to improve the lives of Kenyans," Kenyatta said, adding that his government has been working with relevant U.S. authorities to fast track the issue of introducing direct flights to Kenya. Endit