President William Ruto's visit to Washington symbolises a strategic realignment in Africa, with Kenya emerging as a key economic and geopolitical partner for the US while South Africa hedges its bets.

The first African country to be invited for a state visit to the White House for 16 years might, once upon a time, have been South Africa. Instead last week it was the turn of President William Ruto of Kenya to be invited to Washington for only the sixth such visit during President Joe Biden's four years in office.

The lavish reception hosted by Biden on Thursday included the requisite celebrities and politicians. Actor Sean Penn, Star Trek: The Next Generation star LeVar Burton as well as Barack Obama and the Clintons were all in attendance. Many tech bosses were invited, including Brad Smith, the president of Microsoft; Ruth Porat, president and chief financial officer of Google parent Alphabet; and former Meta (Facebook parent) chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, the famed author of Lean In. The guests enjoyed chilled tomato soup, beef short rib, Maine lobster, and a white chocolate basket for dessert, all paired with wines from California and Oregon.

So, why the red carpet for Kenya? It all underscores Kenya's sudden strategic importance to the US, especially compared with other countries in Africa which may until recently have been seen as more natural or important allies. South Africa...