The Kisumu County government has signed a partnership agreement with the Nation Media Group to support the upcoming Kusi Ideas Festival scheduled for December 8 and 9 in Kigali, Rwanda.

The festival, which is part of the Nation Media Group’s (NMG’s) 60th anniversary celebrations, will bring together influential African leaders, scholars, entrepreneurs and innovators to discuss important issues facing the continent such as climate change, human security, free movement of goods and people in the continent, media and democracy, sports and culture.

The festival is modelled on Kusi, the southerly trade winds that blows over the Indian Ocean between April to mid-September, and which enabled trade in the early centuries up north along the east African coast and between Asia and Africa.

Kisumu Governor Anyang Nyong’o said the partnership would help Kisumu County prepare better as it plans to host the 9th edition of the African Cities Summit in November, 2021. Prof Nyong’o said the festival will also provide a platform to discuss the economy of the East Africa region.

Keynote speakers at the Kusi festival will include Rwandan President Paul Kagame.