The ASEAN Committee in Nairobi (ACN) held a special flag raising ceremony to commemorate the 56th founding anniversary of ASEAN on 08 August 2023 at the Philippine Embassy grounds in Nairobi. The ACN consists of the four ASEAN Member States (out of ten) with resident embassies in Nairobi namely, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand. 

In her remarks, ACN Chair and Philippine Ambassador to Kenya Marie Charlotte G. Tang cited ASEAN’s contribution to promoting peace and stability in Southeast Asia, which has paved the way for the region to become one the most dynamic and fastest-growing in the world today. She added that with ASEAN’s theme for 2023, “ASEAN Matters” Epicentrum of Growth”, ASEAN will continue to establish the region as an epicenter of sustainable economic growth.

Ambassador Tang also mentioned the initiatives of the ACN to raise ASEAN’s visibility in Kenya. These include the annual ASEAN Festival, outreach to the youth and the business community including the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI), and book donation to the University of Nairobi (UoN) Library. She conveyed the hope for increased engagements between ASEAN and Kenya, and between ASEAN and the East African Community (EAC) in the years to come.

Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua of the Kenyan Ministry for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs (MFDA), in his remarks read by Ambassador Josphat Maikara, Secretary of the MFDA’s Foreign Service Administration, lauded the strong cooperation between Kenya and ASEAN Member States, bilaterally and multilaterally. He noted that there are immense opportunities for further cooperation, with ASEAN being part of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and Kenya being part of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).  

Dr. Erick Rutto, President of the KNCCI, expressed appreciation for the active business-to-business and government-to-business engagements between Kenya and ASEAN. He invited ASEAN to further explore opportunities in Kenya in areas of tourism, healthcare, mining, and the digital economy, via South-South cooperation. 

The ASEAN Day ceremony was attended by Kenyan government officials and business representatives, personnel of ACN diplomatic missions, ASEAN diaspora in Nairobi, students, and members of the media. Executive Director Maimunah Moud Sharif of UN-Habitat, a Malaysian national, also graced the event. 

Guests were able to experience the diverse culinary traditions of Southeast Asian countries as they partook of delicacies including Indonesia’s bakso (meatballs), Malaysia’s bubur chacha (dessert with pearled sago, sweet potatoes, yams, bananas, and coconut milk), the Philippines’ beef tapa (dried cured beef), and Thailand’s gang kiew wan gai (green curry chicken).

To highlight the improved connectivity between Kenya and ASEAN, Kenya Airways raffled off air tickets between Nairobi and Bangkok.