by Aggrey Mutambo
US President Barack Obama has finally landed in Nairobi for the 6th Global Entrepreneurship Summit.
Mr Obama’s Air Force One touched down at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi shortly after 8pm on Friday.
He was accompanied by 1000-strong delegation of American government officials, businesspeople and politicians from both the Democratic and Republican parties.
The journey from Washington DC had taken him to Ramstein Air Force Base in south-western Germany before he reconnected to Nairobi.
Mr Obama was also accompanied by his National Security Advisor Susan Rice, Foreign Policy aide Ben Rhodes and White House Spokesman Josh Earnest.
BLACK CAUCUS
Others were House representatives, including members of the Black Caucus and senators.
The senators on board included Chris Coons, Jeff Flakes, Ed Markey.
All except Mr Flakes are democrats.
Representatives included Karen Bass, George Kenneth Butterfield, Eddie Bernice Johnson, Barbara Lee, Gregory Meeks, Charlie Rangel, Terri Sewell and Emanuel Cleaver.
Others were John Conyers, Marcia Fudge, Al Green, Sheila Jackson Lee, Robin Kelly, Gwen Moore, Donald Payne, Cedric Richmond and Bennie Thompson.
ADVANCE TEAM
Some of Mr Obama’s officials had already arrived in Nairobi ahead of him.
They include US Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, Chief of Staff Jim Hock among other advisers of security, trade and human rights.
The huge delegation could signify the importance with which Mr Obama is attaching to his first visit as president to Kenya.
As the plane cooled at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, the Kenyan welcoming team led by President Uhuru Kenyatta was the first to meet the US leader.
6TH GES
Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed and other senior government officials were present.
There were handshakes, hugs, pats on the backs before the US President left the airport.
Mr Obama will be attending the 6th Global Entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi, one of his flagship programmes to lift the youth from poverty.
Besides, Mr Obama will be talking about corruption, human rights, poaching and most importantly, terrorism and how to fight it.