President Uhuru Kenyatta with his deputy, William Ruto, Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i and National Assembly Leaders of Majority Aden Duale on January 11, 2018. [Photo/PSCU]

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President Uhuru Kenyatta has left the country for South Africa this morning.

He will hold talks with his host, South African President Jacob Zuma, in the Indian Ocean city of Durban, centred on bilateral and pan-African issues.

This is his the first foreign trip since he was sworn in as president for his second and final term last November.

Kenyatta and Zuma will be looking to deepen bilateral cooperation, and especially in the areas of trade, security, and infrastructure development.

President Kenyatta and President Zuma will seek to review the progress in the implementation of earlier signed agreements and explore new areas to deepen the fraternal ties between Kenya and South Africa.

In October 2016, President Zuma made a historic State visit to Kenya which witnessed the signing of six agreements and Memoranda of Understanding in various sectors.

The agreements were on visa exemption for passport holders of diplomatic, ordinary and service passports, on defence cooperation, police cooperation, on cooperation between Kenya Investment Authority, Export Promotion Council and the Trade-Invest of South Africa, cooperation in the field of biodiversity, on conservation and management, and on Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia-Transport (LAPSSET) Corridor Projects.

During President Zuma’s visit to Kenya, both leaders directed that negotiation towards the establishment of a Bi-National Commission be expedited to further bolster trade relations between the two countries.

In the area of Immigration, the two countries were able to resolve some of the key issues including visa requirements for Kenya nationals traveling to South Africa.

Key amongst these was the acceptance by South Africa to issue visa on arrival for official delegations, and the issuance of a one-off visa tenable for the duration of study in South Africa for Kenyan Students.

President Kenyatta’s official visit to South Africa will also focus on enhancing cooperation between the two countries in the area of training.