Rwanda and Kenya have signed 11 agreements covering justice, security, immigration, housing, water management, local governance, culture and environmental protection as the two countries seek to broaden bilateral cooperation.
The agreements were signed in Nairobi on Oct. 6 at the conclusion of the 10th session of the Rwanda-Kenya Joint Permanent Commission for Cooperation (JPCC), which brought together senior officials from both countries from Oct. 5-6.
The new instruments are intended to provide a framework for implementing existing commitments while opening cooperation in additional areas, including diaspora affairs, irrigation and urban development.
Rwanda’s delegation was led by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Usta Kaitesi, while Kenya’s delegation was headed by Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Musalia Mudavadi.
Among the agreements are mutual legal assistance in criminal matters and the transfer of sentenced persons between the two countries. Rwanda’s Investigation Bureau and the Kenya National Police Service also signed an agreement to strengthen cooperation between the two law enforcement agencies.
The two governments further agreed to cooperate on political consultations, immigration, diaspora affairs, housing and urban development, water resources and irrigation, local government, culture and heritage, and conservation.
The Nairobi meeting also reviewed progress since the ninth JPCC, held in Kigali in April 2023, and considered areas where the two countries can expand cooperation.
Trade and investment, infrastructure, transport and logistics, information and communication technology, tourism and East African Community integration were identified among the wider areas for cooperation. Kenya also stressed the importance of facilitating the movement of people, goods, services and capital within the region.
The agreements come as Rwanda and Kenya strengthen their use of the Northern Corridor, which links Rwanda to the Port of Mombasa.
A major recent development was the arrival in Mombasa on Sept. 29 of Rwanda’s first 40,000-metric-tonne bulk shipment of refined petroleum products. The cargo, transported aboard the MT Sea Wolf, was received at Kenya Pipeline Company’s Kipevu Oil Terminal 2.
The two countries said they would continue following up on the agreements through technical committees, with a mid-term review of the JPCC outcomes expected in Kigali by October 2027. The 11th JPCC is scheduled for October 2028.
