Digital Meeting, Pentagon, White House- Schedule & Key Events During Ruto's US Visit
Ruto's US visit is the first state visit made by a Kenyan head of state in two decades and the first made by an African president since 2018.
Marvin Chege 
President William Ruto's four-day visit to the United States (US) starting on Monday, May 20 to Thursday, May 24 is a stacked affair if details of a series of events squeezed tightly into his itinerary are anything to go by.
State House spokesperson, Hussein Mohamed, who gave details of the Kenyan Head of State's visit to the American nation on Sunday, May 19 during a press briefing at Harambee House, Nairobi, revealed that Ruto will commence his tour of the US on Monday in Atlanta, Georgia.
It is there that he will visit the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum "to emphasise the two countries' shared commitment to governance and anti-corruption efforts".
He is later expected to visit the Ebenezer Baptist Church to pay homage to the civil rights struggle and thereafter head to the Centre for Disease Control (CDC) headquarters to discuss the US-Kenya health partnership. This is where the CDC's partnership with the Kenya Medical Research Institute (KEMRI) is expected to be announced.
President William Ruto and First Lady Rachel Ruto at a reception hosted by US President Joe Biden during the 77th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 23, 2022. /WILLIAM RUTO
The day will conclude with President Ruto and First Lady Rachel Ruto being hosted by the Kenyan diaspora in Atlanta, with Ruto expected to state his vision for citizens working abroad.
On Tuesday, May 21, still in Atlanta, the Head of State will visit Spelman College to emphasize the critical role of higher education particularly in science and technology which is critical in attracting investments.
He will later visit Tyler Perry Studios to explore opportunities within the creative economy and then head to the Coca-Cola company to forge new investments.
He will also launch Vivo's inaugural store and, lastly, in the company of Rachel Ruto, attend a dinner hosted by the state's mayor, Andre Dickens.
On Wednesday, May 22, Ruto will travel to the US capital, Washington DC, where he will be accorded "full ceremonial state honours" and later meet a congressional delegation and hold discussions at Capital Hill.
“Ruto will then have an audience with a bipartisan congressional delegation led by House Speaker Mike Johnson,” Mohamed explained.
Furthermore, Ruto will meet the black congressional caucus and later a caucus of the senate, and it will be during those meetings that he will brief the legislators on climate change and how Kenya’s leadership is dealing with the adverse effects of climate change.
On Thursday, May 23 Ruto and Reachel will lay a wreath at Arlington Cemetery to honour dead American soldiers and historic figures and later hold a bilateral meeting with US President Joe Biden to highlight development opportunities.
During the bilateral meeting, the two leaders will delve deeper into the Kenya-US relationship, especially in economy, security and health partnership.
Thereafter, Ruto and Biden will hold a joint press briefing at the White House before thereafter being hosted for a State dinner.
For his final day in the US, President William Ruto will be hosted for breakfast at the US Chamber of Commerce where the two nations will discuss trade, investment and digital cooperation.
Later, he will have a digital roundtable discussion hosted by US Vice President Kamala Harris to explore the potential for expanding the US-Kenya digital partnership.
For his final event in the US, Ruto will visit the Pentagon where the Kenya-US defence partnership, especially in the fight against terrorism, extremism and cybersecurity will be highlighted.
Mohamed said that the gracious invitation comes amid warm relations between the two nations owing to the fostered partnership in critical thematic areas, among them defence cooperation, free democracy, governance and civilian security, health corporations, and multilateral and regional issues.
"It also reflects the strategic importance of Kenya to the US as the leading regional anchor and the main commercial gateway to East Africa," he said.
Ruto's US visit, according to Mohamed, is the first state visit made by a Kenyan head of state in two decades and the first made by an African president since 2018.
