Kenya is set to host a major agricultural exhibition featuring over 100 Chinese companies in the Capital, Nairobi.
The expo, described by the government and industry leaders as a strategic effort to address the nation’s significant trade deficit with Beijing, will enhance local productivity through technology transfer.
The 2025 Africa International Agricultural Expo (AIAE), organised in partnership with AgriAfrica Exhibition, China’s Hongxing International Exhibition Company (HXIE), and the Ministry of Agriculture, will take place from 28 to 31 October at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC).
Organisers announced on Wednesday, October 22, that the event will feature 150 exhibitors and is expected to attract over 10,000 visitors.
The high-profile expo aims to directly address Kenya’s trade imbalance, a point raised by a journalist at the press launch.
Statistics indicate that in the first half of 2025, Kenya’s exports to China amounted to only Sh4.5 billion, compared to imports worth nearly KSh 500 billion.
Tito Mutai, CEO of AgriAfrica Exhibition, stated that the expo is intended to move beyond discussion and create tangible market opportunities.
Why Agri-Expo 2025?
“In line with our theme of improving and increasing agricultural productivity through innovation and market access, we have strived… to solve the problem of market access by bringing in buyers, international buyers, to come and interact with Kenyans,” Mutai said.
He confirmed that “over 100 international delegations” are scheduled to attend, with a significant group of 115 Chinese business leaders participating in person.
A representative of the Chinese partner, HXIE, outlined the scale of the event, which will cover 20,000 square metres.
The expo will feature six zones, including agricultural technology, machinery, and animal health. The representative also announced that pre-expo matchmaking has already produced results, with “five to six trade and investment projects” valued at an estimated 15 million RMB (approximately KSh 290 million) expected to be signed.
Phyllis Njerne, speaking for the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, described the expo as a critical learning and market-access opportunity for Kenya.
“China is a bit advanced compared to Kenya. We are expecting to learn a lot in terms of technology… We are seeing an opportunity where we are going to learn, where we are going to partner, so that we can be able to go around this issue of climate change,” Njerne said.
When pressed on the trade deficit, Njerne pointed to specific, high-value products where Kenya can compete.
“We have had a very big discussion with the Chinese government… and we are seeing that there is an opening for avocado to go to China. “We are also seeing that the Chinese have an interest in orthodox tea, which we are now doing in big numbers… We are seeing an opportunity there,” she said.
The expo is seen as a key platform for matchmaking, where Kenyan firms can partner directly with Chinese counterparts to gain the technology and market entry needed to boost exports and begin to unlock market access in China.
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