Kenya reverse policy on communication with foreign diplomats
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Foreign diplomats in Kenya will no longer communicate directly with specific government departments
Foreign diplomats in Kenya will no longer communicate directly with specific government departments.
Kenya reverses policy on communication with embassies, upending a policy employed earlier this year to ease bureaucracy.
Prime Cabinet Musalia Mudavadi on Monday told an audience of foreign diplomats in Nairobi that his office remains the focal point of interactions between Kenya and the outside world, and that future communication will have to pass through the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs.
“Going forth, all correspondences with the government shall be transmitted through the Office of the Chief of Protocol, State Department of Foreign Affairs.
“We believe that this review will allow for a more coherent approach to issues of mutual concern, and we seek your kind cooperation on this matter,” he said at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Nairobi.
Mudavadi was addressing the diplomats at a luncheon, his first with foreign envoys since he took over the docket of Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs last month.
Previously, under a directive by President William Ruto, diplomats representing foreign missions were allowed to directly contact departments of interest in what state house argued was to ease bureaucracy and delays.
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But Mudavadi said this has since been reviewed to enhance coherence in government communication.
Kenya’s change of policy earlier this year had been a slight departure from the global tradition where a focal government department often coordinates correspondence with foreign entities, as per the Vienna Conventions of 1961 and 1963, the basic international treaties on diplomatic and consular privileges and conduct.
Nonetheless, Mudavadi said the government was engaging everyone from across the world to help support government programmes such as the Bottom-up policy.
“We believe in the power of partnerships,” he said promising to continue discussions with other countries on easing visa restrictions.
“We will keep having bilateral discussions with you about our nations’ restrictive visa policies and laws, as well as any other administrative restrictions that could impede safer and more constructive travels.
“Kenya is persuaded that this is the best way to address difficult and challenging global issues.”
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