NAIROBI, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Kenya and Turkey are set to sign a double taxation avoidance agreement in order to boost bilateral commercial ties, a Turkish diplomat said Friday.
Ahmet Cemil Miroglu, Turkish Ambassador to Kenya, told a media briefing in Nairobi that both nations have already agreed on the text of the agreement.
"Both countries are closely coordinating in order to find the appropriate time for the two governments to sign the tax agreement," Miroglu said when Turkey commemorated the second anniversary of the attempted coup in 2016.
Miroglu said that Kenya held presidential elections in 2017, while Turkey held theirs this year and this slowed down the signing of the bilateral tax treaty.
Both nations have already signed a number of agreements including investment protection agreements.
Miroglu said that the tax treaty is aimed at enhancing commercial and investment cooperation between the two countries.
He added that in 2017, bilateral trade hit 150 million U.S. dollars and both governments have put a target of reaching 1 billion dollars in the next few years.
Government data indicates that Kenya exports tea, coffee and flowers to Turkey while Kenya imports from Turkey mainly machinery equipment.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Kenya in 2016 and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta is set to visit Turkey soon.
The envoy said that Turkish investments in Kenya are approximately 30 million dollars and his nation's private sector is looking to enter into the agriculture, energy and housing sectors.