President William Ruto ’s government has announced a major shift in the country’s foreign policy by allowing other countries and their missions in Kenya to engage directly with ministries and state agencies, without going through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The Vienna Convention (1961) grants host states prerogative to determine how to engage with foreign diplomats. The tradition, however, has been that those engagements be done through the local foreign ministry.
“Whereas the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations entrusts all official business with the receiving state to be conducted through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it has been agreed in the interest of efficiency that the missions may communicate directly with Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the government of Kenya without going through the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs,” the ministry said in a March 1 memorandum shared with all diplomatic missions in Kenya as well as United Nations agencies.
“A copy of the correspondence should, however, be shared with the Ministry. In the interest of coordination, the foregoing is subject to requirement by the missions to avail a report to the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs on the held deliberation and decision undertaken within three days of the meeting,” the memo further said.
The change in policy has been interpreted by international relations experts as a move to clip powers of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the Moses Kuria-led Trade ministry, which is central to President Ruto’s bid to increase foreign investments in Kenya, set to play an integral role in the latest arrangement.
“The reason [for the memo] is removing bureaucratic bottlenecks that hinder completion of MoUs and other important negotiations with the diplomatic community,” Dr Mutua said.
Mr Kuria has been a prominent figure abroad, engaging with presidents and investors directly. He has emerged as the most travelled minister in the Ruto administration, having been overseas on at least 18 occasions in the first 100 days since he took office.
Dr Mutua, on the other hand, has been out on 15 occasions, visiting among other countries, the US, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Tanzania and Algeria.
Curiously, Dr Mutua has largely been hosting ambassadors and high commissioners in his office rather than travelling to their countries.
The memo comes as President Ruto moves to consolidate his foreign policy, which key officials say will be centred on the economy, investments, and the export of human capital expected to raise up to Sh1 trillion in remittances, and which will not be centred on either the West or East.
