South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has dismissed suggestions of rivalry between Kenya and South Africa, describing the two countries as strategic partners with a shared vision for Africa.
The South African Head of State said that the two countries do not want to overplay their importance in Africa, but they have an elevated voice to influence outcomes.
“We are not rivals. South Africa and Kenya never see ourselves as rivals. We are complementary and we have a special strategic relationship that speaks to friendship, respect and equality,” said Ramaphosa.
Speaking alongside President William Ruto during a joint press briefing at Union Buildings in Pretoria, Ramaphosa said the two countries often align on key continental and global issues and continue to deepen cooperation.
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He also rejected claims that South Africans are xenophobic, saying migration challenges should be addressed through collaboration among African leaders.
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“South Africans are not xenophobic…they are Africans, they want to live with other Africans peacefully and our people are calling on us as leaders to resolve the many challenges that are brought about by migration.”
Ebola
On the Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Ruto said Kenya had taken precautionary measures to protect its citizens, including deploying testing kits at border points and training health workers.
He defended the government's decision to allow the United States to establish an Ebola treatment facility in Kenya for its personnel and citizens who may contract the virus.
“What you see as a debate in Kenya is a lack of information,” Ruto said, arguing that critics did not fully understand the country's preparedness efforts.
“If we do not prepare and a situation occurs, we would have to answer much more difficult questions than the ones we are answering now.”
Ruto said the United States has supported Kenya's health sector for nearly three decades and that declining its request to establish the facility at its own cost would have been unreasonable.
The two leaders spoke after overseeing the signing of six memorandums of understanding covering trade and investment, shipping and maritime cooperation, sports, arts and culture, technical and vocational education, and women's empowerment.
Ramaphosa described economic cooperation as a key pillar of bilateral relations and said Kenya remains South Africa's largest trading partner in East Africa.
“As South Africa, we want to see more Kenyan businesses investing in our market and more Kenyan goods on our shelves,” he said.
He also lauded Ruto's efforts to strengthen the African Union and congratulated Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania on winning the bid to host the Africa Cup of Nations in 2024.
Ruto said the visit highlighted the strength of ties between the two countries and provided an opportunity to chart a shared future through deeper cooperation.
He noted that bilateral trade grew from Sh76 billion in 2024 to Sh84 billion in 2025, and pledged to remove tariff and non-tariff barriers to further boost commerce.
“This momentum must not only be sustained, but accelerated,” he said.
Ruto added that health, education, and aviation remain key pillars of cooperation between the two countries.
The president also said arrivals from Kenya to South Africa rose to 58,000 in 2025, an 18.7 percent increase following the introduction of a 90-day visa-free entry policy.
Later, the two leaders were scheduled to address the Kenya-South Africa Business Forum.