President William Ruto’s daughter, Charlene Ruto, has in the recent past sparked reactions from Kenyans online thanks to her frequent trips.
In the past one month, the President’s second-eldest child has made over six local and foreign trips, meeting high ranking government officials.
There has also been a debate about the nature of Charlene’s trips, what office she represents and whether it is sponsored by the state.
In this article, WoK looks at the trips made by Ruto’s daughter in the recent months.
Kitui County
On October 29, 2022, Charlene toured Kitui County where she held a meeting with County Assembly Speaker Kelvin Katisya and other officials.
She shared details of her meeting with Katisya in an update on her Twitter account where she heaped praised on the County Speaker.
“It was exciting to exchange ideas with Kelvin Katisya, the speaker of the Kitui County Assembly. He is the youngest speaker to be elected and is leading a very youthful team to bring effective & efficient change within the county by encouraging entrepreneurship & capacity development,” Charlene noted.
Isiolo County
Charlene’s trip to Kitui County came days after she visited Isiolo County where she held meetings with leaders over climate change.
The president’s daughter held a meeting with Isiolo County Deputy Governor James Lowasa and other officials at the county offices.
“Today’s highlight was meetingIsiolo County Deputy Governor Dr James Lowasa, and his team members at the Isiolo County Government offices. We engaged in key discussions on Climatic change and its impact on Environmental progression,” Charlene said on Twitter.
Embu County
On October 26, 2022, Charlene was in Embu County where she met Governor Cecily Mbarire and other county officials.
Following the meeting, she disclosed that the county had put up measures to create niche tourism, further praising Mbarire for revolutionising agriculture and sports.
“I was so honoured today to spend some time with one of the most effective female leaders in our country, Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire and Deputy Governor Kinyua Mugo
“They are putting in serious measures to create niche tourism areas in Embu County and its environs. Embu County has great potential in Agritourism and Sports tourism. Now this is effective leadership,” Charlene wrote.
Kirinyaga County
President Ruto’s daughter also visited Kirinyaga County where she held a meeting with Deputy Governor David Githanda.
Taking to her Twitter page, Charlene shared photos from the meeting noting that they held discussions on various issues including development opportunities in the county.
“Kirinyaga County is ripe for investment in areas of hospitality and value addition of crops such as tomatoes
“It was a pleasure sitting and sharing these matters with Deputy Governor H.E. David Githanda. The progression of our counties is the progression of our countries,” she wrote.
Morocco
Charlene flew to Morocco in earlier this month for the MeDays Forum in Tangiers where she popularised the bottom-up economic mode.
She appealed to African Presidents to adopt the bottom-up approach, arguing that it was key to creating better opportunities for the youth on the continent.
“Restoring higher levels of pan-African social mobility will be among the most important political, social and economic challenges. The longer we wait to address the issue, the more tumultuous our politics will become,” she said.
Charlene also met with the Moroccan Youth Minister Mohammed Mehdi Bensaid whom she exchanged ideas with.
“A massive thank you to the Moroccan Minister of Youth, Culture & Communication Mehdi Bensaid for hosting the Pan African Congress of Kenya team and I for an engaging conversation and exchange of ideas that will go a long way in shaping youth development projects for both nations,” she said.
The president’s daughter also visited the Dabatek Cultural Center and held a meeting with Kenyan students through the Moroccan International Agency for International Cooperation.
Spain
Charlene was also spotted in Spain where she enjoyed her vacation following her trip to Morocco which borders Spain to the North.
According to photos online, the first daughter could be seen on one of the beaches in the Mediterranean having a good time with her friend.
In one of the photos, Charlene could be seen aboard a yatch while in another, she could be seen visiting different tourist destinations.
