MOSCOW, Russia – President William Ruto has called for a fundamental shift in Africa’s economic relationship with Russia, urging Moscow to help establish industries, transfer technology and expand local manufacturing instead of maintaining a trade model in which African countries mainly export raw materials and import finished products.
Addressing the Third Russia-Africa Summit in Moscow on Thursday, October 29, Ruto said Africa needed to capture a greater share of the wealth generated from its natural resources by investing in processing, innovation and industrial production.
He argued that the continent could no longer afford to supply raw materials to global industries while purchasing manufactured goods produced from those same resources.
“Africa cannot continue to be a supplier of raw materials and a consumer of finished products,” Ruto said, calling for partnerships that create industries, develop skills and generate employment across the continent.
The appeal puts industrialisation and technology transfer at the centre of Kenya’s push to deepen economic ties with Russia, as the two sides explore opportunities in agriculture, energy, engineering and manufacturing.
Ruto Identifies Sectors for Russian Investment
The President urged Russia to support African efforts to build domestic production capacity in several strategic sectors, including fertiliser manufacturing, agricultural mechanisation, irrigation, mineral processing and agro-processing.
In agriculture, he said cooperation should go beyond supplying fertilisers and other imported inputs to establishing local manufacturing capacity and strengthening food security.
He also identified energy infrastructure, engineering and manufacturing as areas where investment could help African businesses become more competitive in regional and international markets.
Ruto’s message builds on Kenya’s broader effort to attract Russian capital and technical expertise. During a Kenya-Russia business roundtable in Moscow on October 28, he promoted investment opportunities in manufacturing, fertiliser production, energy, mining and infrastructure.
However, the proposals outlined in his summit address do not, by themselves, establish that specific factories or investment projects have been agreed upon.
AfCFTA Market Offers Route to Wider African Trade
Ruto also invited Russia to use the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as a platform for building industries and regional supply chains.
The agreement is intended to expand trade among African countries and create a larger integrated market. Ruto said the market of approximately 1.4 billion people offered opportunities for competitive manufacturing and investment that could benefit African economies and international partners.
Under the proposed approach, Kenya and other African countries would seek partnerships that combine foreign capital and technical expertise with local resources, labour and access to regional markets.
The objective, according to the President, is to ensure that investment produces measurable economic benefits through industries established, skills transferred and jobs created, rather than agreements signed without tangible results.
Fertiliser Production and Food Security in Focus
Agriculture featured prominently in Ruto’s address, with the President highlighting Africa’s dependence on imported food and agricultural inputs despite its considerable production potential.
He called for cooperation in affordable fertilisers, local fertiliser manufacturing, irrigation technology, mechanisation, agricultural research and agro-processing.
For Kenya, such partnerships could support efforts to expand domestic production and reduce reliance on imported inputs, although the address did not announce a specific fertiliser project or financing commitment.
Ruto also called for deeper cooperation with Russia in education, technical training, scientific research, digital technology and artificial intelligence.
He said African young people should become creators of technology rather than remain consumers of innovations developed elsewhere.
The President further urged collaboration in pharmaceutical research, healthcare technology and local vaccine manufacturing, arguing that Africa needed stronger capacity to produce essential medicines and respond to future health emergencies.
Ruto Links Industrialisation to Climate Finance
The President said Africa’s industrial ambitions must advance alongside environmental protection, arguing that countries which contributed relatively little to historical greenhouse gas emissions face serious consequences from climate change.
He cited Kenya’s reliance on renewable electricity generation and investments in geothermal energy, green manufacturing and climate-resilient infrastructure as examples of how economic development could be pursued alongside climate responsibility.
With the next United Nations climate conference, COP31, approaching, Ruto called for greater financing for climate adaptation, early-warning systems, drought-resistant agriculture and infrastructure designed to withstand climate-related disasters.
He maintained that African countries should not be forced to choose between protecting the environment and lifting their populations out of poverty.
President Renews Call for African Seats at UN Security Council
Beyond economic cooperation, Ruto used the summit to renew Africa’s demand for permanent representation on the United Nations Security Council.
He argued that the international governance system should reflect present-day realities rather than the global balance of power that existed when the United Nations was established in 1945.
Africa, he said, has 1.4 billion people and 54 countries but lacks permanent representation on the Security Council.
Kenya reaffirmed its support for the African Common Position seeking permanent seats with the full rights and privileges attached to permanent membership.
Ruto also called for reforms to the international financial system, including more affordable long-term financing, stronger African multilateral financial institutions and improved debt sustainability.
He said developing countries needed access to capital on terms that would allow them to finance infrastructure, build industries and support economic transformation without perpetuating excessive debt burdens.
Russia-Africa Action Plan Sets Cooperation Framework
The summit comes as Russia and the African Union seek to establish priorities for cooperation over the 2027–2029 period.
On October 28, African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov signed an action plan covering 19 areas of cooperation, providing a framework for further engagement between the two sides.
Ruto said the success of the summit should ultimately be judged by whether its commitments translate into investments, industrial projects, research partnerships and opportunities that improve people’s lives.
He called for a relationship founded on sovereign equality, technological cooperation and productive investment, with Africa participating more meaningfully in global production and decision-making.
