Ruto in Pretoria: Can Kenya and South Africa find common ground?

From June 3, Ruto begins his first state visit to South Africa, continuing a pattern in which Kenya’s last three presidents – Mwai Kibaki, Uhuru Kenyatta and now Ruto – have all undertaken high-profile visits to Africa’s most industrialised economy.

On paper, relations between the two countries remain strong. A statement from the South African Presidency described bilateral ties as “strategic” and “cordial”, while Kenya’s High Commission in Pretoria said the visit “reflects a shared commitment” to deepen prosperity and advance development.

President Cyril Ramaphosa made a similar trip to Nairobi in November 2022, when he announced conditional visa-free entry for Kenyans travelling to South Africa for short stays.

Yet those visa conditions remain a source of frustration, particularly among Kenyans living in South Africa.

In an open memorandum to President Ruto ahead of the visit, Kenyan diaspora in South Africa called on the two leaders to discuss a free trade agreement, reform work permit rules and strengthen cooperation in health and education.

“The challenges facing Kenyans in South Africa across migration, health, trade and education are interconnected and amenable to action,” they said, calling for stronger consular support and structured engagement with Pretoria through the existing Joint Commission of Cooperation.

They also urged both governments to recognise academic and professional qualifications mutually and review work permit procedures, which they described as lengthy and expensive.

“Taken together, these measures would materially improve the lived experience of Kenyans in South Africa while strengthening the broader bilateral relationship.”

However, bilateral issues are only one dimension of the trip.

Kenya and South Africa have often taken different approaches to global and continental politics.

Ruto skipped last year’s G20 meeting in South Africa, sending a representative instead.

Ramaphosa, meanwhile, did not attend Nairobi’s inaugural Africa Climate Summit in 2024 and also missed the recent Africa Forward Summit, co-hosted by Kenya and France. Some observers linked these absences to France’s decision to invite Kenya, rather than South Africa, to the G7 Summit later this month.

Bob Wekesa, director of the African Centre for the Study of the US at the University of the Witwatersrand, said both countries should pursue their national interests while finding common ground on continental priorities.

“These countries have been prioritising different political issues in the alliances that are emerging; South Africa is more prominent in BRICS while Kenya is more inclined towards the West,” Dr Wekesa told The EastAfrican.

“It is important that these two countries use their anchor-state status in Africa to recalibrate the continent in a shifting global order. Evidence shows that when Africa speaks as one, it makes more sense.”

While bilateral engagement remains important, he argued that both countries should also bring their respective regional blocs – the East African Community and the Southern African Development Community – into broader discussions on trade and development.

Ruto has championed African Union reforms, an area in which South Africa remains influential but often finds itself on the opposite side of key debates.

When Israel sought observer status at the African Union, South Africa and Algeria opposed the move, and no consensus has been reached. Pretoria is also a vocal supporter of Palestine, which holds observer status at the AU.

When South Africa took Israel to the International Court of Justice over the Gaza conflict in 2024, Kenya was among countries that argued the dispute required a political rather than legal solution.

South Africa, increasingly at odds with US President Donald Trump, has maintained closer ties with Moscow and the wider BRICS bloc. Kenya, by contrast, has remained more closely aligned with Washington.

“They should come up with a common position, at least a framework for engagement with global powers, particularly because a new world order is emerging, and that needs a collective African position,” Dr Wekesa said.

“It is okay for each country to pursue its own policies, but on broader questions of global governance they should speak as one. They should find a common position on African priorities.”

The two countries have also differed on Western Sahara. Kenya supports Morocco’s autonomy plan, while South Africa backs the right to self-determination for the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, whose government operates in exile from Algeria. Kenya nevertheless continues to host the Sahrawi embassy in Nairobi.

The visit also comes as South Africa faces criticism over recurring xenophobic violence directed at other African nationals.

Kenyans in South Africa said the two governments should address what they described as “xenophobia and securitised policing”.

“Periodic anti-migrant mobilisation, including by groups such as Operation Dudula and, more recently, March to March, has affected Kenyans at clinics, schools and informal trade venues, particularly in Gauteng,” they said in Monday’s memorandum.

They also objected to the conditions attached to visa-free travel. Kenyans are currently permitted a maximum stay of 90 days per calendar year, with individual visits capped at 30 days. Nairobi bears the cost of deporting Kenyan citizens who overstay.

Ramaphosa has repeatedly rejected accusations that his government is indifferent to xenophobia. During his visit to Nairobi, he argued that immigration controls should not be used to restrict Africans’ ability to travel and live across the continent.

“South Africa and Kenya must work together to ease movement of people, because our citizens should not be strangers on this continent.

“Immigration must never be a source of division. Africans should embrace one another, not chase each other away.”