About 35,000 Kenyans presently live in Somalia while some half a million Somalians also reside in the Kenyan refugee camps with about 1.5 million integrated over time. The integration ration of Somalians to indigenous Kenyans remains among the highest in Kenya.
Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Macharia Kamau, during his visit to Mogadishu- Kenyan Embassy to assess its situation said there are great unexploited trade opportunities between Kenya and Somalia.
He also cited tourism, which he said remains greatly unexploited, noting that currently Kenya receives 32,268 tourists from Somalia annually “The number of tourists can be tripled if the visa protocols are enforced and issued on arrival for Somali nationals,” Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Said.
The PS also held talks with the political and military leadership of African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) based in Mogadishu and explored cooperation and opportunities between Somalia and Kenya.
The significant political and security challenges between Kenya and Somalia in the last decade should not bar what would be the enormous benefits from cooperation and business in the two countries.
