President Ruto Hosts American Businessman Bill Gates at State House
President Ruto on Wednesday hosted American businessman Bill Gates at State House, Nairobi, where they discussed various issues including healthcare and agriculture.
Ruto commended the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation for its support of Kenya in various areas such as healthcare, agriculture, and ICT.
“We appreciate the support the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation continues to extend to Kenya in realizing our development goals, especially in the areas of healthcare, agriculture and ICT sectors,” Ruto said in a brief following the meeting.
“We will continue to collaborate towards the realization of food security and universal health coverage in our country.”
The philanthropist arrived in Kenya on Tuesday to visit national and local leaders, partners, and grantees; meet with regional scientists and innovators; and announce the foundation’s commitment to supporting new innovations and ingenuity aimed at improving health, food security, and gender equality in African countries.
Gates and other foundation leaders are also in the country to visit and learn from farmers who are using digital tools to help with climate adaptation, see how primary health care clinics have delivered care during the pandemic and helped address ongoing threats like HIV, TB, and malaria, and learn more about how leaders are charting a path forward despite the challenging economic conditions, with investments in youth, innovation, and entrepreneurship.
On Thursday, Gates will participate in a conversation with university students to learn and share perspectives on how innovative tools and approaches can bolster efforts to increase food security and support climate adaptation across Africa. The moderated town hall event dubbed Innovating for Food Security & Climate Change in Africa will be co-hosted by Africa.com and the University of Nairobi.
In Kenya, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation supports tools and technologies in agriculture, health, immunization, nutrition, sanitation, financial services, gender equality and more.
The foundation’s partners in Kenya include Maisha Meds, which uses technology to improve patient access to quality and affordable care, Kidogo, which offers childcare for Nairobi’s low-income families, and KALRO, which helps farmers with climate adaptation.