NAIROBI-The 2022 Chinese film festival opened in Kenya on Thursday with a view to boosting Sino-Africa cooperation and cultural exchanges. Ababu Namwamba, newly appointed Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Sports and Arts said in a speech read on his behalf by Michael Pundo, CEO of Kenya Cultural Center that the film festival is a platform for filmmakers from the two countries to exchange ideas and enhance the viewership of Chinese films by the Kenyan audience.  “It is also a concrete action to actively implement the cultural and people-to-people exchange program under the nine plans of the Eighth Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) that was held in 2021,” Pundo said.
The film festival was jointly organized by the Chinese Embassy in Kenya, the Kenya Cultural Center, and the Chinese Confucius Institute in Kenya. According to the organizers, 14 Chinese films, 12 of which have been translated into Swahili will be screened to local audiences over the next one month.  Pundo revealed that the collaboration to host the Chinese film festival reinforces Kenya’s commitment to improving cultural and artistic exchanges in various forms and promoting outstanding cultural and artistic products.  He said that Kenya and China have strong bilateral relations which are underpinned by strong pillars such as the cooperation and exchanges in the film industry. Pundo noted the continued partnership between Kenya and China in the film industry has seen Kenya become part of the Silk Road International League of Theaters. 

 Zhou Pingjian, Chinese Ambassador to Kenya said that the exhibition of Chinese films in Kenya as well as Kenyan films in China will promote the understanding and communication between the two peoples.
Zhou noted that the key to close relations between different countries is cordial collaboration between the people of the countries. “Friendship and goodwill between people provide an avenue for the growth of strong bilateral relations,” he added.