Obama to meet and visit with extended family members in Kenya

Seven-year-old Barack Obama Okoth, named after US President Barack Obama, reaches for his book inside a classroom at the Senator Obama primary school in Nyangoma village in Kogelo, west of Kenya's capital Nairobi, June 23, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama is going to meet and visit with some members of his extended family who still live in Kenya during his forthcoming trip to the African country, the White House announced Wednesday.

"I do believe he'll have an opportunity to spend some time privately with members of his family," said Susan Rice, the National Security Adviser, while speaking of Obama's Kenya trip at a White House press briefing.

Other members of Obama's extended family will also be invited to some of the public events, Rice said.

However, Obama will not visit his family's ancestral village of Kogelo due to "time and logistical reasons," according to Rice.

Obama will be the first sitting president to visit Kenya and Ethiopia, and the first sitting president to address the African Union. While in Kenya, Obama will meet with Kenyan leaders and attend the Global Entrepreneurship Summit. In Ethiopia, the president will speak to a gathering of the African Union, Rice said.

Obama's four-day trip will kick off Thursday evening despite the fact the president's schedule was leaked this week by a Kenyan airline. Kenyan Airways reportedly sent out an email that detailed the scheduled arrival and departure times of Air Force One.

"It has, in no way, affected our approach to or plans for the trip," Rice said. "And it's also my understanding that oftentimes, some of this information turns out to be not entirely accurate. But I don't think it in any way is disturbing our plans."

Some lawmakers from both political parties will also join Obama on the trip.