AFRICA-OBAMA/KENYA-SUMMIT UPDATE Obama says entrepreneurs in Africa can give hope, deliver growth

Record ID: 146318

  • Title: AFRICA-OBAMA/KENYA-SUMMIT UPDATE Obama says entrepreneurs in Africa can give hope, deliver growth
  • Date: 25th July 2015
  • Summary: NAIROBI, KENYA (JULY 25, 2015 ) (REUTERS) ****WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** UNITED STATES PRESIDENT, BARACK OBAMA, AND KENYA' S PRESIDENT, UHURU KENYATTA WALKING ON STAGE SIGN READING: 6TH GLOBAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP SUMMIT NAIROBI 2015 KENYATTA LOOKING ON (SOUNDBITE ) (English) UNITED STATES PRESIDENT, BARACK OBAMA, SAYING: "Africa is on the move. Africa is one of the
  • Embargoed: 9th August 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Kenya
  • Country: Kenya
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA265AJNNYXLAL8K6IO7ZBNVME5
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: U.S. President Barack Obama told African entrepreneurs in Nairobi on Saturday (July 25) they could help counter violent ideologies and drive growth in Africa, in his address to a Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Kenya, his father's homeland and the biggest economy in east Africa, at the beginning of the first presidential visit to Kenya.
    The annual U.S.-sponsored conference was being held for the first time in Sub-Saharan Africa at a U.N. compound in Nairobi.
    Kenya has been hit by a spate of attacks by Somali Islamist group al Shabaab in recent years and security is expected to top the agenda in talks later on Saturday with President Uhuru Kenyatta.
    Obama is keen to boost business ties with Africa, where China overtook the United States as the continent's biggest trade partner in 2009 and said governments had to help by ensuring the rule of law was upheld and by tackling corruption, two issues often cited by businesses as major obstacles.
    "Africa is on the move. Africa is one of the fastest growing regions in the world. People are being lifted out of poverty, incomes are up, the middle class is growing, and young people like you are harnessing technology to change the way Africa is doing business," Obama told the conference, where he was greeted by applause when he began with the words "Jambo", the Swahili for "hello".
    "Entrepreneurship offers a positive alternative to the ideologies of violence and division that can all too often fill the void when young people don't see a future for themselves, he added.
    He said more had to be done to help new firms secure capital.
    An array of technology and other companies have started up in recent years in Africa in a bid to shift the continent away from a traditional focus of commodity exports, but entrepreneurs often complain they cannot find affordable capital.
    "It is the time for a new generation of Africans to promote inclusive prosperity. In our pursuit of this prosperity, we have truly embraced the private sector," said President Uhuru Kenyatta, in his opening speech, in which he welcomed the U.S. president.
    Obama is expected to later pay tribute to victims and survivors of the 1998 Nairobi U.S. embassy bombing. After that attack, the embassy was moved to a new site, next to the U.N. compound.
    On Saturday evening, he will hold talks with President Uhuru Kenyatta before attending a state dinner.
    Discussions are expected to focus on security and counter-terrorism cooperation.
    Some Africans complain that Obama, whose father is buried in west Kenya, has not given enough focus to the continent during his presidency. Obama has sought to change the perception, including hosting African leaders in Washington last year.
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