DP Gachagua’s special message for summer bunnies on investment
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has called on Kenyans residing in the diaspora to invest their earnings in Kenya while cautioning against an immediate return home due to the country’s prevailing unemployment issues.
Gachagua made these remarks on Friday, concluding a three-day Diaspora Investment Conference held at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi.
During his address, Gachagua emphasized the importance of financial preparation for retirement, urging Kenyans abroad to consider investing in their home country.
“East or West, home is best. At the end of it all, let us not pretend: it is the desire of every Kenyan working out there to one day come back home and retire here, but you must prepare for that retirement. You don’t want to come back and find it (the country) the way you left it.”
Gachagua advocated for sending money to Kenya but suggested postponing the physical return, stating:
“Please put money here, but don’t come yourself; we don’t need you here right now… we have enough problems with employment. We want you to stay out there, but we want you to send money here… you’ll come back home eventually but not now.”
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The Deputy President’s remarks were made during the second annual Kenya Diaspora Investment Conference (KDIC), held under the theme “Tujenge Kenya; Bridging Borders, Building Futures.”
The conference aimed to showcase investment opportunities across various sectors to members of the diaspora.
President William Ruto, who opened the conference on Wednesday, expressed the government’s appreciation for the diaspora’s role in Kenya’s economic growth.
He emphasized the importance of Kenyan citizens living abroad and acknowledged their contributions to decolonizing, democratising, and globalizing the country’s economy.
President Ruto reassured Kenyans in the diaspora about their security in host countries and encouraged their active involvement in Kenya’s socio-economic development.
“As a government, the security and safety of all citizens is our foremost commitment and most fundamental obligation, without which every other endeavor, including investment, is not possible.”