Visit our COVID-19 site for latest information regarding how we can support you. For up to date information about the pandemic visit www.sacoronavirus.co.za.

bs-regular
bs-extra-light
bs-light
bs-light
bs-cond-light-webfont
bs-medium
bs-bold
bs-black

Community


Share knowledge. Ask questions. Find answers.

Community blog

Read our latest news and views and get to know us better

Kenya – full of potential and action
SBGroup
Community Coordinator

CwvAUyVWEAAmMLG.jpg

In the second stage of her Africa Connected journey to reveal the true, economically promising Africa, journalist Nikiwe Bikitsha will explore the vibrant capital city of Kenya in a whirlwind three-day tour.

Recent research has shown that one out of 10 businesses expecting growth in the next two years are considering expanding outside South Africa. Of these, 37% are considering countries in East Africa, including Kenya. So, what makes the East African nation so attractive to potential investors?

Just like Nikiwe’s first country of exploration, Ghana, Kenya offers investment opportunities in the agriculture, manufacturing, and infrastructure sectors. However, what sets ‘Africa’s Silicon Valley’ apart from its West African cousin is its rapidly expanding Information Communication and Technology (ICT) sector.

Kenya boasts possibly the most famous innovation hub on the continent: The iHub in Nairobi. Here, Nikiwe will visit the headquarters of the newly opened IBM Centre, one of the city’s many tech incubators that help start-ups build, market and sell their solutions through a number of training and mentoring methods. According to experts, Kenya’s focus on innovation could see its ICT sector worth USD1 billion in the next three years.

Also on the agenda is a tour of Nairobi’s famous Kazuri Beads Factory. Popular with tourists, the factory produces handmade jewellery and pottery inspired by Kenya’s culture and wildlife. Though it exports around the globe, Kazuri is renowned for more than just its uniquely beautiful crafts: It famously provides sustainable employment for disadvantaged members of Kenyan society, currently employing over 400 women. 

Further exploration will reveal that Kenya is a nation bent on gender-focused development, realising that more fairly-paid women in the workforce equals successful growth and, thus, increased investor confidence. During her trip, Nikiwe will interview two female entrepreneurs; co-founder of AkiraChix Judith Owigar and jewellery designer Adele Dejak. Though successful in different industries, both women are members of the Lionesses of Africa network and were speakers at the Standard Bank-sponsored Lionesses of Africa Annual Conference 2016 held in Johannesburg recently. In partnership with us, the network supports, empowers and drives the economic prosperity of businesswomen on the continent.

Showing that Africa is a trade destination favoured by international investors, Nikiwe will call into one of many Stanbic Bank branches to draw a few Chinese yuan (or renminbi). While novel, this is also extremely significant: China is currently Africa’s largest trading partner, and the Standard Bank Group’s partnership with ICBC (Industrial and Commercial Bank of China) helps us facilitate the financial infrastructure needed to manage and grow Chinese industrial investment into the continent. By enabling the operations and investments of our partners and customers - at home and abroad - we meet our overall objective of driving Africa’s growth and making progress real on the continent.   

For a full recap of Nikiwe’s Nairobi tour, be sure not to miss any posts on http://africaconnected.702.co.za/ . Or, follow #AfricaConnected on Twitter.