Kenya hosted the United States (US) President Barack Obama in July over two days, as he visited the land of his ancestors for the first time as a sitting president.
Excitement was on very high levels all across the East African country with Obama around. Kenyans were very delighted especially by his plane, the Airforce 1, and his motorcade that included the famed ‘The Beast’.
During the visit, Obama, the United States’ first African-American president, juggled formal and informal expectations, finding time to host a dinner for his Kenyan family amidst his tight official schedule.
His visit came with lots of positives for the Kenyan people in many ways. Even before his arrival, the country’s capital, Nairobi, got a makeover in preparation for hosting him. Roads were tarmacked, the streets were cleaned, lawns within the city were revamped among much more.
Obama also chaired a Global Entrepreneurship summit that was held in Nairobi, an event that attracted more than 3000 investors from across the world. This was the first time that the summit was hosted in sub-Saharan Africa.
A series of mega deals that would see investments in the Lamu port, an oil pipeline, power plants, urban commuter rail and highways, and various projects in the health and tourism sectors were signed.
The US President found time to also meet university students during his visit to Kenya. He gave a speech at Kenyatta University where thousands of students were packed to get a glimpse of him.
He also delivered a public speech at Safaricom Indoor arena to around 4,500 people. Here, people got a rare chance to shake his hands as he walked out of the arena after he was done delivering his speech.
After Kenya, President Obama travelled to neighbouring Ethiopia.
