Kenya has secured new trade and infrastructure financing deals with China following a four-day visit by Chinese Vice President Han Zheng to Nairobi, with an “early harvest” Economic Partnership Agreement granting Kenyan exports, including tea, coffee, and avocados, duty-free and quota-free access to the Chinese market starting in May.
President William Ruto said the finalised agreement builds on a preliminary arrangement reached earlier this year, opening access to an additional market valued at approximately $19 trillion and creating expanded opportunities for investors. He described the broader package of deals, which includes new memoranda of understanding covering agriculture and infrastructure, as a major economic boost for the country.
A flag-off ceremony held at Nairobi Railway Station, presided over by Han Zheng and Kenya’s Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, marked the dispatch of 54 containers of Kenyan products, including avocados, coffee, avocado oil, and hides and skins, for shipment to China via the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR) to the Port of Mombasa.
Han confirmed that from May 1, China will eliminate customs duties on all products from 53 African countries that maintain diplomatic relations with Beijing, and urged Kenya to take full advantage of the tariff measures to increase exports of high-quality and distinctive products to the Chinese market.
The agreements arrived amid intensifying competition between China and the United States for African trade and influence, with Beijing remaining the continent’s largest trading partner at over $280 billion in annual exchanges. Han’s visit to Kenya came just one day after United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio called President Ruto to discuss bilateral cooperation, commercial opportunities, and regional security.
Kenya is also strengthening ties with Washington through separate agreements in healthcare, minerals, and trade, including a $1.6 billion five-year health partnership signed in December 2025 and ongoing negotiations for a broader bilateral trade and investment agreement.
China-backed infrastructure remains central to Kenya’s development strategy. A planned $5.4 billion extension of the Standard Gauge Railway from Naivasha to Malaba at the Ugandan border is expected to enhance regional connectivity, linking the Port of Mombasa to landlocked neighbours including Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
