By Matilda Atieno
The second edition of the Kusi Ideas festival kicked off in Kisumu today with calls for collaborative efforts to address the post-Covid 19 socio- economic challenges facing various sectors.
President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Rwandan counterpart, Paul Kagame virtually addressed the festival’s opening ceremony.
The two day festival co-sponsored by the Nation Media Group and the Kisumu County Government is being held at the Ciala Resort.
The festival intends to explore ideas under the theme “Towards post covid-19 Africa: Recovery together.
In his official speech, Kisumu Governor Prof. Peter Anyang’ Nyong’o said Kenya has been hit hard by the pandemic, hence the need for urgent interventions.
On his part president Kagame called for a continuous collaboration adding Africa has natural talent that must be tapped to create innovative and new ways to invest in its people.
The Governor noted that this years edition of Kusi will go down in history as having been celebrated under a crisis, the pandemic which has ravaged the world, leaving deaths, and wrecked economies in its wake.
Governor Nyong’o said that life must continue and the people must learn how to keep safe and continue to fight the disease under the new normal.
The Governor said Kisumu County, wasc working to implement a Covid-19 Social Economic re-engineering recovery strategy that will run up to 2023.
He called on the private sector to help in the
resource mobilisation efforts to help address the post covid 19 challenges.
On the much anticipated COVID-19 vaccine, the Governor noted that the impending roll out was good news but warned Kenyans against relaxing in enforcing the covid regulations.
