SPEECH ON U.S.-KENYAN RELATIONS DELIVERED BY THE AMBASSADOR

UNCLAS NAIROBI 004942

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KPAO PREL
SUBJECT: SPEECH ON U.S.-KENYAN RELATIONS DELIVERED BY THE AMBASSADOR
TO THE AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN KENYA



1. Following is the text of a speech on U.S.-Kenyan relations delivered
by the Ambassador before the American Chamber of Commerce in Kenya on
November 21. Significant local media coverage is expected.


2. Begin text

The United States and Kenya: A Robust Partnership
By Ambassador Michael E. Ranneberger
Speech to the American Chamber of Commerce in Kenya
November 21, 2006

Good afternoon. I'm delighted to see that the hotel is serving turkey
for lunch to mark the uniquely American holiday of Thanksgiving. On
this holiday we give thanks for our blessings - good health, good
friends, and loving families. As this holiday approaches, I am
thankful and feel very fortunate to be the representative of the
President and the American people in Kenya, an ally and a friend. An
important aspect of my job is supporting the American private sector
and business community, so I'm especially grateful to have this
opportunity to be with you today.

As many of you know, I arrived in Kenya on August 11th. I've met with
government officials, including the President, with opposition
politicians, members of civil society, religious leaders, ordinary
citizens, representatives of the private business sector, and many
others. I've traveled around the country, I've listened and I've
asked many questions because, as Kenyans say, "Kuuliza si Ujinga,"
which means "asking is not being foolish." I'll continue to listen,
question, and learn throughout my time here.

Today, I want to talk about the partnership between the United States
and Kenya, which drives our strong interest in developments in this
important country. I've taken to heart the Kenyan proverb "Kufanya
majadiliano mazuri ni utaji," which means "having a good discussion is
like having riches." Today, I won't be talking in diplomatic sound-
bites; rather, I want to lay out my views in some detail.

From my discussions I have gained a keen appreciation of the complexity
of Kenyan society and politics. But underlying this complexity is
something clear and encouraging: a marked sense that the country is,
fundamentally, moving in a positive direction. As we look at longer-
term trends and examine what Kenyans themselves are doing on the
political and economic fronts right now, we have reason to be
optimistic about the country's future.

At the same time, we know, as you know, that the country faces immense
challenges. These include endemic corruption, insecurity, tribalism,
persistent poverty and glaring disparities of wealth, severe
environmental degradation, and the scourge of HIV/AIDS and malaria,
among others. These problems are real. They are deep-seated and do
not lend themselves to easy solutions, even if the resources and will
required to tackle them were in abundant supply.

Tackling these challenges forms the basis for much of what the U.S.
Government does in partnership with Kenyans - the government, civil
society, and you, the private sector. There is, however, a real danger
that an inordinate focus on these difficulties and the negative
perceptions they generate about Kenya obscure the progress the country
is making in many areas. Equally important, I believe that Kenyans
have the capacity - intellect and resources - to tackle successfully
the challenges they face.

Since 2002, the economy has been recovering steadily, with economic
growth that may exceed 6% this year. Kenya's recovery is broad-based,
driven by an expanding and dynamic private sector that increasingly
uses modern technologies and management practices.

We see similar dynamism and growth in civil society. Kenya's is
perhaps the most active and vibrant in sub-Saharan Africa, ranging from
self-help groups in rural villages, to watchdog organizations working
to keep government accountable. The media is robust. Kenya, with an
85 percent literacy rate, has an educated citizenry. There is
remarkable activism on the part of youth and women, who are inexorably
taking their rightful place in society and politics. Very importantly,
there is a generational change underway that will contribute to the
transformation of this country.

Politically, Kenyans from all walks of life are proud that their
society now enjoys a dramatically increased scope of freedom and
political space, even when compared to just five years ago. As Will
and Ariel Durant pointed out so eloquently in The Lessons of History,
each generation is made richer by the achievements of those preceding
it, but each generation equally has a tremendous responsibility to
nurture and carry forward those achievements. Kenyans have earned their
political freedom and they are rightly working to preserve, defend, and

expand it.

Contrary to the perceptions of many, the Government of Kenya is playing
an important role in facilitating the progress taking place. The
country's long stretch of macro-economic stability boosts the
confidence that underwrites current economic growth. The government
also is implementing long-overdue reforms in a range of sectors. These
include a complete overhaul of the telecom sector aimed at lowering
business costs and making Kenya more competitive in the global scramble
for trade and investment. The government is rolling out budget and
public expenditure reforms aimed at ensuring that taxpayer resources
are directed to where they are really needed, and to ensure that the
money is spent well and accounted for. Privatization and procurement
reform bills were passed recently, and the government is moving to
implement both. Civil service reforms are being enacted, and the
government just announced an ambitious effort to reform the system
governing the ownership of land in the country. The list of reform
programs goes on.

Kenyans are rightly debating key questions. Do these reforms go far
enough? Are they being implemented with sufficient haste? Are they
even the right reforms? My point is that we shouldn't dismiss these
changes out of hand. They are in many cases sincere efforts by
dedicated public servants to improve the way Kenya is governed. If
these myriad reform efforts succeed, they will help unleash the full
potential of Kenya's energetic and entrepreneurial people. It's
incumbent upon us to scrutinize these efforts, and support the reforms
that hold the most promise.

These broadly positive trends and developments provide fuel for the
strong and growing partnership between our two countries -- our
governments, our private sectors, and our people. This partnership is
built on common values and common interests. Americans and Kenyans
value hard work, education, freedom, and strong families.
Specifically, our partnership embraces: promoting shared democratic
values and good governance; eradicating disease and poverty; promoting
economic growth; fighting insecurity in the form of crime and
terrorism; and collaborating to promote regional peace and stability,
especially in Sudan and Somalia. The United States and Kenya are, in
effect, working together to advance a common agenda in a way that
mutually benefits both countries.

We don't just talk about partnership. We act on it. Were we a private
sector company, we would likely be the biggest foreign investor in
Kenya, and one of its largest employers. Our Mission is the largest
U.S. diplomatic presence in sub-Saharan Africa, home to 18 Federal
agencies and offices, and nearly 1,300 employees, both American and
Kenyan. We directly generate a similar number of jobs through the
goods and services we procure locally in Kenya. The U.S. is
effectively investing about $1.4 billion in Kenya's economy and
development in 2006 - through direct U.S.Government programs on
governance, development, and security; through the value of Kenyan
exports to the U.S. under the African Growth and Opportunity Act;
through the new $40 million USAID building just dedicated yesterday;
through remittances Kenyans send back from the U.S.; and through our
direct support for programs carried out in Kenya by international
organizations and institutions -- to name just some of the sources.
Through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, we
are leading the fight against the scourge of HIV/AIDS in Kenya by
providing $330 million over the next twelve months, a 60 percent
increase from the previous year!

The breadth and depth of American engagement in Kenya reflect the
importance we attach to Kenya's growth as the most stable democracy and
as the most important player, politically and economically, in East
Africa. Kenya's role as a regional leader makes it a strategic ally of
the U.S. in carrying out programs and activities aimed at fostering
peace, stability, and development across the entire region.

To keep moving forward and to achieve the promise of a better future
for all Kenyans, the challenges the country faces must be addressed.
As President Kibaki himself told me when I presented my credentials,
friends speak candidly. As they say in Swahili, 'Akwambiaye
Akupenda!,' which means a true friend will alert you to what lies
ahead. In my view, a true friend is someone who provides an honest and
constructive perspective. I have talked about many of the positive
forces that are moving Kenya forward. As a friend and partner, our
responsibility is to help Kenya to maintain that progress and help
prevent any reversal of the gains made.

Of course, we cannot do more than Kenyans themselves want to do. I've
received a clear message from Kenyans across the political, social, and
economic spectrum that they are determined to take the extraordinary
steps needed to maintain momentum. But it remains to be seen how this
will be translated into action through Kenya's democratic system. It

is, perhaps, worth recalling the words of the great Kenyan writer Ngugi
wa Thiongo, who said: "We have to summon the collective will to decide
that, if we shake hands with others in whatever forms of cooperative
ventures and exchange, it will be on the basis of our standing on our
two feet, however wobbly, rather than firmly leaning on any crutches.
But what have we done as opposed to what has been done to us? What
lessons have we really learnt from our ancestors who fought so
resolutely against slavery and colonialism?"

Addressing two of Kenya's major challenges would strengthen democracy
and assure a brighter future. First, while it is increasingly free and
open, Kenya's political process remains too narrowly focused on tribal,
regional, and personal interests. This is to the detriment of a
national agenda and the welfare of the people as a whole. When a
country's political class - whether leaders in government or in the
opposition -- consistently put tribal, family, or personal interests
first, governance fails. Government becomes not a pathway to achieve
national consensus and development for the betterment of all, but
rather a platform for patronage, cronyism, corruption, waste, and
mismanagement.

In discussing this sensitive issue, let me first state the obvious.
The United States has had and continues to have its share of problems
in this regard. In decades past, political parties in the U.S. were
often identified with specific ethnic groups or regions of the country.

The result was violence and division. Local governments in the big
cities of the U.S. until only recently were seen less as service
providers to the public than as patronage machines, doling out largesse
to a select few groups or families, to the detriment of the greater
public good.

How Kenya charts its political future to overcome the scourge of tribal
politics is for Kenyans and Kenyans alone to decide. As a friend and
partner, the U.S. is here to help, in part by way of the example set by
our own experience. I should add here that the recent very deplorable
incident of discrimination against Ngugi wa Thiongo in the United
States shows that we still have a long way to go. While our own
democracy remains imperfect, today both of the major parties in the
U.S. are truly national in scope. As Kenya approaches an historic
election next year, the U.S. will continue to support and encourage an
inclusive process in which all the parties running for office reach
across tribal and regional boundaries, and develop national platforms
that address the key challenges facing Kenya and all its citizens.

For the sake of Kenya's development and the U.S.-Kenya partnership, I
urge all politicians and political actors in Kenya to begin now to
frame their approaches to the 2007 elections in ways that appeal to
Kenyans of all regions, religions, ages, gender, and tribal
backgrounds.

The second inter-related challenge facing Kenya is endemic corruption.

Corruption undermines citizens' confidence and trust in government and
in elected representatives. If left unchecked, this volatile
combination of corruption and tribalism could become a vicious and
potentially dangerous downward spiral of insecurity and instability.
The upsurge of violent crime in Nairobi and other areas are grave
concerns. The same kind of lapses in law and order that enable such a
climate of insecurity to exist are the same ones exploited by
international criminals and terrorists operating against Kenyan or
foreign targets. Effective action - and not over-reaction -- by police
and security forces can, however, only be carried out if there is a
clear sense that the rule of law is paramount.

Grand-scale corruption is an historical fact in Kenya. The reality
today is that Kenyans face the challenge to stamp out corruption and
ensure accountability. Corruption creates a negative perception of
Kenya both at home and abroad that will linger and persist until
decisive action is taken to bring the guilty to justice - no matter
what their position or degree of influence may be. As I have met with
ministers in the government, I have been impressed by much of what they
have described about reforms being carried out in the civil service and
in restructuring ministries to make them more transparent and
accountable. However, the mega-corruption cases - Goldenberg, Anglo-
Leasing, and Charterhouse Bank and those associated with them - cast a
pall over this reform process. The dark cloud of these cases makes it
difficult to talk credibly about the significant steps being taken in
favor of accountability and transparency. That is why it is so
essential to send a clear message through dramatic action to bring the
perpetrators to justice. Instead, in recent days we have been
presented with conflicting, inconsistent signals by the government.

Let me again state the obvious. We in the U.S. have our own problems
with corruption. It is a universal -- not a uniquely Kenyan or African

-- phenomenon. Early in our history, the standard was set commendably
high by Thomas Jefferson who declared, upon leaving the presidency: "I
have the consolation of having added nothing to my private fortune
during my public service, and of retiring with hands as clear as they
are empty." Yet almost two hundred years later, one only need look at
personal politics in my country, at the vitriolic debate over campaign
finance reform, at the corruption trials of lobbyists, prominent
businessmen, and Members of Congress to appreciate the challenges we
still face.

Corruption in Kenya exacts a terrible human and economic cost and is
probably the single greatest impediment to economic development and
poverty reduction. The Anglo Leasing-style contracts totaled some $700
million. To put this number in perspective: $700 million is more than
the total foreign assistance provided to Kenya over the past year by
international development banks and governments like my own. It?s $100
million more than the amount budgeted by the Kenyan government for
roads in this fiscal year. It's almost twice as much as all money
budgeted for health.

Corruption taxes the private sector, raising the costs of doing
business; thus leading to disinvestment. The high costs and
disincentives created by corruption discourage new investment -- both
local and from abroad -- that is vital to Kenya's economic growth. In
short, corruption is like a cancer, robbing Kenya of the resources
badly needed for development and prosperity. It makes it impossible
for Kenya, its institutions, and its people to produce to their fullest
potential.

As a partner, the United States stands shoulder to shoulder with Kenya
and Kenyans in the war against corruption. Several current and planned
assistance programs strengthen institutional and human capacity to
better enable the Kenyan government to investigate and prosecute
corruption and other serious crimes. In areas where there is strong
political will within the government, we are stepping up with
additional resources. We also stand ready to cooperate fully with
Kenyan law enforcement agencies in investigating the insidious
international dimensions of grand-scale corruption. We have done so in
the past, and will do so again when asked.

Beyond the deep-seated twin challenges of corruption and tribally-
tinged politics, there are other very serious issues confronting the
Kenyan people. As I heard during my recent visit to Coast Province,
there is tremendous concern about increased narcotics trafficking and
the related plague of money-laundering, recently brought to light by
the Charterhouse Bank scandal. Corruption, narcotics trafficking and
money-laundering are intertwined phenomena. If they are allowed to
take root and flourish, much of the progress towards democratic and
economic institution-building will be undermined, and perhaps wiped
out. Urgent action is needed to address these growing problems. A
clear starting point is to take decisive action with respect to
Charterhouse Bank. In addition to action in prosecuting corruption
cases, the Government needs to secure passage of anti-money laundering
legislation as soon as possible. We and other partners stand ready to
support implementation of an anti-money-laundering law once passed.

Bringing corrupt officials and businesspeople to justice isn't just
about changing the law. It's about changing behavior. The 2007
elections are a major opportunity for Kenyans to do just that by
insisting that candidates delineate clear proposed courses of action to
deal with corruption, tribalism, and the other challenges facing the
country. I believe the electoral process in Kenya - under the watchful
oversight of the Independent Electoral Commission -- can be conducted
in a constructive, transparent manner. Achieving consensus on electoral
reforms will make the electoral process more inclusive and
participatory.

In the United States, we often say that all politics are local. We
understand the role that local group identity plays in politics,
whether it be regional, tribal, or ethnic. Focusing on a national
agenda, however, is a way of emerging from traditional zero-sum
politics, from a strictly tribal or ethnic-based approach. By focusing
on such "win-win" agenda, politicians will accommodate the diversity of
this great country and appeal to wider constituencies. From my
perspective, this is the challenge that parties and potential
coalitions face as they enter the electoral period.

During the 2007 electoral process, Kenyans will in effect be setting
the agenda for the next five years. This can credibly be done only
through an inclusive, candid, national dialogue that leads to
development of a substantive agenda to move Kenya forward. Kenyans
will share a large responsibility not just in electing the next
government, but in holding that government accountable for implementing
a broadly-shared national agenda. A credible, fully participatory
national electoral process is the key step forward in the fight against

corruption and tribalism, and to maintain the positive momentum in
Kenya.

In a democracy, the ultimate power lies not with politicians, nor with
the international community, nor with the rich and powerful, but with
the ordinary people. They get to decide if they are going to allow a
leader to remain in office, or to send him into retirement; they get to
reward good governance by extending the tenure in office of those who
have lived up to their expectations; or they can - quite literally -
hand over power to new leaders who have most effectively articulated a
vision to which they subscribe.

Some Kenyans maintain that they are being held to higher standards than
some neighbors on issues of governance, democracy, and economic
development. Perhaps this is true, but the Kenyan people themselves
rightly set this higher standard when they demand greater
accountability, transparency, better infrastructure, reliable public
services, and greater public safety. Kenya's democracy has come of age
in a fast-paced world that allows no quarter to countries that don't
take dramatic steps forward. I believe most Kenyans appreciate this.
And, as we all know - "atakae, hachoki!" - which means "a person in
need never tires." Indeed, it is the energy and commitment of Kenyans
to move forward that makes me optimistic about the future of this great
country. That same energy and commitment ensure a strong future for
the U.S.-Kenyan partnership.

Finally, as one of the stewards of that U.S.-Kenyan Partnership, I
pledge to keep in mind Colin Powell's rule number 13: "perpetual
optimism is a force multiplier!" Thank you again for having me here
today.

Asante sana.
End text.


3. This speech was cleared by the Country Team and in substance by AF
A/S Frazer.
RANNEBERGER