Kenya Closes Havana Embassy, Shifts Caribbean Diplomacy to Jamaica

Kenya has closed its embassy in Havana and moved its Caribbean diplomatic operations to Kingston, Jamaica, following the opening of a resident High Commission there in July.

The transition marks a restructuring of Nairobi’s diplomatic presence in the Caribbean. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the process was completed smoothly and praised the staff involved in transferring responsibilities.

Ambassador Mwenda Karisa, who previously headed Kenya’s mission in Havana, has taken up his new post in Kingston as Kenya’s first resident envoy to Jamaica. Kenya’s official diplomatic communications have also been moved from Havana to Kingston.

Kenya’s embassy in Havana was opened in 2016 by then-President Uhuru Kenyatta. It was the country’s first diplomatic mission in the Caribbean and served as a base for relations with countries across the wider region, including parts of Central and South America.

Healthcare was one of the main areas of cooperation between Kenya and Cuba. In 2018, Kenya brought 100 Cuban doctors to the country under a government-to-government agreement aimed at addressing staffing shortages in county hospitals. The programme ended in 2023, as bilateral relations failed to develop significant trade ties despite their political importance.

Jamaica provides Kenya with a base built on shared historical and cultural links, as well as access to other Caribbean countries with which Nairobi aims to strengthen relations. Kingston will therefore serve as both a bilateral partner and a regional base for Kenya’s diplomatic engagement in the Caribbean. For Cuba, the closure ends nearly a decade of Kenyan diplomatic representation in Havana. 

Diplomatic relations between the two countries remain in place. Cuba continues to operate an embassy in Nairobi, while Kenya will cover relations with Havana through a non-resident ambassador based in Kingston.