RIYADH: Trade collaboration between Saudi Arabia and Kenya is poised to strengthen as energy ministers met in Riyadh to discuss various topics, including the “Empower Africa” initiative. Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman welcomed Davis Chirchir, his Kenyan counterpart, for talks focused on delivering solutions and advancements in various sectors, such as clean energy, communication, electronic health, and online education. The meeting also explored opportunities for collaboration between the two countries, centering on enhancing cooperation in petroleum and its supplies, renewable energy, and energy efficiency, as well as exchanging expertise in project development, policies, and systems, as reported by the Saudi Press Agency. Commenting on the official meeting, Kenya’s Ministry of Energy and Petroleum posted on its X account: “We are enthusiastic about seeking partnerships that can contribute to expediting the achievement of our development goals in the energy and petroleum sector.” According to the Kenyan ministry, to meet its Nationally Determined Contributions of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 32 percent, the country aims to attain 100 percent clean energy by 2030. “Currently renewable energy accounts for over 92 percent of the energy mix,” the ministry said. Energy is one of the key enablers of Kenya’s Vision 2030 and the Big 4 Agenda development programs. The country treats energy security as a matter of national priority, Kenya’s Department for Energy says on its website. It adds that the Third Medium Plan 2017-2022 identifies energy as the country’s driver into “a newly-industrializing, middle-income economy, providing a high quality of life to all its citizens in a clean and secure environment.” Nairobi, the same source adds, considers access to competitively priced, reliable, quality, safe and sustainable energy as an essential ingredient for the country’s social-economic development. In October 2023, the Saudi energy minister unveiled a plan to provide electricity, telecommunication services, e-learning, and e-medical care to African countries. The initiative, announced at the Middle East and North Africa Climate Week, will be jointly managed by the Kingdom’s health, energy, and communications ministries in cooperation with stc and Dawyiat.