By Andrew Ross
NAIROBI, Kenya
Nairobi is currently getting a major facelift ahead of U.S. President Barack Obama’s upcoming visit later this month.
The visit, slated for July 24, will be Obama’s first trip to his ancestral homeland as the U.S. president. While in Kenya, Obama is also slated to attend a Global Entrepreneurship Summit, which this year will be held in sub-Saharan Africa for the first time.
In advance of the historic visit, the main route from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport to Nairobi’s central business district has been redecorated.
According to local government officials, 1,200 flagpoles -- 600 for Kenyan flags and 600 for American flags -- will be erected between the airport and Nairobi’s State House, the seat of the Kenyan government.
Hundreds of young people have been hired by the Nairobi County government to plant flowers and trees along Obama’s intended route; others have been tasked with installing CCTV cameras and new streetlights.
County employees are also in a race against time to upgrade and repaint the roads along which Obama is expected to travel.
Evans Ondieki, a member of Nairobi’s county executive committee for transport and public works, said Kenya was planning to use Obama’s visit to promote itself to the rest of the world.
“We’re hosting President Obama for a few days, during which Nairobi will be the center of focus around the globe,” Ondieki told Anadolu Agency.
“We want to use this time to market Nairobi as a beautiful town,” he added.
“The first phase of the [beautification] project will cost us around 40 million shillings [almost $400,000],” said Ondieki, “but later, we’ll spend more than 190 million shillings [roughly $1.8 million] to develop the face of Nairobi.”
‘Distinguished guest’
George Kingori, 21, was hired by Nairobi’s local government last month to help spruce up the capital for Obama’s scheduled visit.
“My job is to plant flowers and beautify the highway,” Kingori told Anadolu Agency. “Other young people have been tasked with painting the roads and fixing potholes.”
“When you’re expecting a distinguished guest, you must do some housecleaning,” added Kingori.
Nairobi resident Mary Murira, for his part, said he was looking forward to Obama’s visit.
“This is his homeland and he is our guest,” the 32-year-old accountant told Anadolu Agency. “He should come to a clean and beautiful town.”
Meanwhile, business is booming for Nairobi’s street vendors who have taken to selling merchandise bearing Obama’s image, while residents of the capital have been told to show hospitality.
“I urge you [Nairobi residents] to exercise the spirit of hospitality and bear with the few inconveniences you may experience,” Manoah Esipisu, a spokesman for President Uhuru Kenyatta, declared recently.
Esipisu went on to note that over 1,500 potential investors from around the globe would be in the country for the two-day entrepreneurship summit.
“The privilege of hosting this summit endorses our professed positive economic outlook,” the spokesman asserted. “We are eager to use this forum to deepen our regional integration and improve our global competitiveness.”
