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NAIROBI, Kenya, July 24 (UPI) -- President Barack Obama on Friday became the first U.S. commander-in-chief to make an official visit Kenya when Air Force One touched down in Nairobi to start a two-day trip. Obama, who visited Kenya in 2006 as a U.S. senator, will meet with government officials there and speak at a global business conference. The president's father, who died in 1982, was a native of Kenya.
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"Proud to be the first American President to visit Kenya. Happy to see family, and to talk with young Kenyans about the future," Obama tweeted Friday.
Obama's arrival -- at about 1 p.m. EDT Friday -- marked his fourth trip to Sub-Saharan Africa, the most by any U.S. president. He will make his fifth, in Ethiopia, on Sunday.
Nairobi, Kenya, was deserted on Obama's arrival, as security measures tightened on Friday in the city of three million people.
The presidential party stopped at a U.S. military base in Ramstein, Germany on its way to Kenya so Air Force One could refuel, the official White House schedule stated. Obama will address the Global Entrepreneurship Summit Saturday morning and will attend a state dinner in the evening.
Sunday, Obama will depart for Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where he will meet with staffers at the U.S. Embassy.
Saturday, Obama will deliver an address to the global entrepreneurship Summit in Nairobi and speak at a suburban Nairobi soccer stadium. Although Kenyans were disappointed he would not visit his ancestral hometown of Kogelo, anticipation for Obama's visit has been high.
Billboards throughout Nairobi offer welcomes, and some businesses have changed their names in his honor. Otherwise, the city seems desolate because of tight security measures. Over 10,000 police officers have been deployed in Nairobi this weekend, and residents are chafing under new restrictions to minimize security and terrorist concerns; ATMs are closed, vendors offering goods from vegetables to Obama souvenirs are off the streets and all non-essential businesses are closed.
Nairobi County Police Chief Benson Kibue has urged residents to cooperate with security officials and claims life in the city will be business as usual during Obama's visit.
"There is nothing that will be unique arising from the visit of President Obama. Nairobi will not stand still in terms of business, everything will run as usual and Kenyans will be proud to host President Obama here in Nairobi city," he said.
However, the city's business district was deserted Friday, traffic problems were negligible and major roads were scheduled to be closed later Friday afternoon.
Obama's arrival in Kenya Friday marked the 50th foreign nation he has visited since taking office in 2009. He is only the sixth U.S. president to make at least one official trip to Sub-Saharan Africa.
