NAIROBI, June 17 (Xinhua) -- The 2026 Africa international construction machinery expo opened on Wednesday in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, bringing together government officials, business leaders and manufacturers to strengthen China-Africa industrial cooperation.
Co-organized by the Kenya Investment Authority and Hunan Hongxing International Exhibition, the three-day forum -- formally titled the Africa International Construction Machinery, Mining Machinery, Agricultural Machinery, Automobile and Motorcycle Parts, Electromechanical and Hardware Products Expo -- attracted more than 200 enterprises from China and Africa, including a business delegation from southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.
During the opening ceremony, Juma Mukhwana, principal secretary in Kenya's Ministry of Investments, Trade and Industry, said in a speech read on his behalf by Erastus Gatebe, industrialization secretary at the ministry, that the expo demonstrates growing confidence in Kenya as an investment destination and highlights the expanding economic partnership between Africa and the global manufacturing community.
Ding Guiping, deputy general manager of Hunan Hongxing International Exhibition, noted that the exhibition serves as a platform to implement the outcomes of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.
The event is expected to attract more than 15,000 visitors and bring top-tier Chinese machinery companies to connect with African firms, fostering win-win business matchmaking, he said.
Erick Rutto, president of the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a business lobby, highlighted Kenya's need for strategic partnerships with Chinese firms that offer technology transfer, operator training and localized technical support.
He also encouraged participating Chinese manufacturers to view Kenya as a strategic base for investment, local assembly, distribution and expansion into East Africa and as well as the rest of Africa.
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