OREANDA-NEWS. August 30, 2012.  Mitsui & Co. Europe Plc., Nairobi Branch was re-launched at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Kenya's capital city Nairobi. Over 200 guests, drawn from both the public and private sectors, attended the ceremony.

We had the honor of hosting Assistant Minister for the Office of the Prime Minister Alfred Khang'ati, Assistant Minister for Energy Mahamud Mohamed, Assistant Minister for Energy Magerer Langat, Assistant Minister for Education Calist Mwatela and Minister Yoichiro Yamada of the Japanese Embassy, and we believe this event was a very good opportunity for us to strengthen our relationship with Kenya.

After introducing General Manager Narita of the Nairobi Branch, EMEA Chief Operating Officer Sakamoto informed the delegates that the Mitsui Nairobi office will take care of business interests in East Africa, and he emphasized that Mitsui is coming to Kenya with a business strategy focused on investment, in addition to its commodities distribution business.

Among the speeches our guests presented, Assistant Minister Khang'athi delivered a message on behalf of Prime Minister Raila Odinga of the Republic of Kenya, which expressed Kenya's strong expectations of Mitsui in terms of investment and contribution to nation building through various business and other activity. In his speech, he observed that Mitsui's reopening ceremony is a wise decision and that other multinational companies like GE have also reopened their offices now. He expressed hope that Mitsui and the government of Kenya will have a mutually beneficial relationship.

Assistant Minister for Energy Magerer Langat urged Mitsui to fully take advantage of the government's "vision 2030 projects" particularly in the power and energy sectors. Assistant Minister for Education Calist Mwatela urged Mitsui to consider partnering with the ministry in its regional contribution activities.

Minister Yamada noted that Mitsui's return to Kenya is due to its attractiveness as a regional hub for Eastern Africa.

The Nairobi Branch hopes to join forces with the EMEA Business Unit to contribute to the development of Kenya and fellow countries of the East African Community (EAC).