NAIROBI, Kenya
Kenya's government has defended the cost of President William Ruto's trip to the United States.
The price of hiring the luxury
private jet in which he and his delegation travelled is estimated to be $1.5m
(£1.2m), according to Kenya’s private KTN TV station.
"The benefits from this
visit far outweigh such a million times," government spokesman Isaac
Mwaura told journalists, without confirming the cost.
More than 30 people, including
a popular comedian, are reported to be accompanying the president, who landed
in Atlanta, Georgia, on Monday.
Mr Ruto is on a four-day visit
at the invitation of his US counterpart Joe Biden. It is the first state visit
by a Kenyan president to the US in two decades and the first by an African
leader in 16 years.
He is set to hold talks with
Mr Biden on Thursday, focusing on trade and security partnerships, including
Kenya's pledge to lead a multi-national mission to restore order in Haiti.
But some Kenyans have
expressed outrage that he chartered an aircraft from the Dubai-owned RoyalJet
company for the trip instead of using his usual presidential plane given his
government’s austerity measures and the cost-of-living crisis.
It is not clear why the
president opted for the private jet but there have been safety concerns about
the usual presidential plane, known as Harambee One, which was bought nearly 30
years ago.
The US government denied
reports that it had paid for the aircraft used by Mr Ruto and his delegation.
“Just to be clear: The United
States of America did not pay for President Ruto’s jet to the US,” a
spokesperson for the US embassy in Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, told journalists.
It comes amid anger over plans
by the government to impose additional taxes, with Mr Ruto urging Kenyans to
live within their means.
The cost of bread, mobile
money transfers, airtime and data is set to go up as the government seeks to
raise an additional $2.4bn in taxes in the financial year that starts in July.
Critics say the taxes are only
helping to fund extravagance in government rather than improve public services.
Mr Ruto has made more than 50
visits abroad since he became president in 2022 - averaging at more than three
a month.
Some belt-tightening
initiatives have been implemented amid the criticism of what one presidential
economic adviser admitted was the administration’s “itchy
feet problem”.
Last October, the government
suspended “non-essential foreign travel” in a move aimed at curbing runaway
public spending.
All ministries and state
departments were also directed to reduce their operational budgets by 10%.
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