Chinese and United States top diplomats are due in Kenya on separate dates this month as the East African nation intensifies her foreign engagements, a Kenyan official said.

State House Spokesman Manoah Esipisu told journalists in Nairobi that China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit Kenya from August 9, noting that Wang's visit will focus on trade and investment.

He said Beijing is a big trade partner, and has supported a number of significant initiatives in the country's infrastructure sector.

Esipisu said that U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is expected in the country within the month.

He said the exact dates of Kerry's visit, which is expected to focus on regional issues, will be confirmed in due course.

"Matters we expect to be discussed at his meetings with our president and foreign affairs minister Amina Mohammed will include security, regional and international relations, and especially the recent upheaval in South Sudan as well as the developments in Somalia," he said.

"Both China and the United States are allies and friends of long standing. I am sure Kenyans will welcome their representatives most warmly," Esipisu said.

(Xinhua News Agency August 7, 2016)