Construction of the multibillion Lord Egerton Agro-industrial Park aimed at transforming the Central Rift region into a major commercial hub, has finally kicked off.
Nakuru Trade, Culture, and Tourism County Executive Committee Member (CECM) Mr Stephen Muiruri disclosed that the industrial Park that will host a variety of industries, including ICT hubs, energy-sector companies, engineering and construction firms and chemical industries, will have all the support infrastructure such as power, water and the park ring road ready within within three months, after which the investors will be immediately allocated space and allowed to operate, as the spatial plan is ready.
The CCEM further said that the County government in collaboration with Egerton University and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries were building the facility on 200 acres at the University’s Ngongongeri farm in Njoro.
The Industrial Park, according to Mr Muiruri, was also intended to attract private investors into establishing food processing plants that will add value on agricultural produce.
Mr Muiruri noted that Governor Susan Kihika’s administration with support from National government had unlocked the delays in the implementation of the over Sh 3 billion project, that is expected to create more than 4,000 employment opportunities upon completion.
Speaking when the County Government handed over the site to a contractor, Mr Muiruri disclosed that the devolved unit’s County Aggregation Industrial Park (CAIP) and Export Processing Zone (EPZ) have each been allocated 100 acres at the University’s Ngongongeri farm.
He said the County Government had approved a policy document to establish and implement County Aggregation Industrial Parks (CAIPS) and Special Economic Zones (SEZs).
“The CAIP project is a partnership between the State Department for Industry and the Council of Governors (COG) and it will see Nakuru County allocate 250 million shillings towards the initiative this financial year which will match a similar amount from the national government,” Mr Muiruri indicated.
The CECM who was accompanied by Trade Chief Officer Mr Samuel Ndegwa stated that the devolved unit bets that CAIPS and SEZs will help grow industrialization and middle income to provide quality life to all residents by 2030 in a clean and secure environment.
Mr Muiruri noted that the county administration was also collaborating with the Ministry of Investments, Trade and Industry (MITI) to start CAIPS in line with the bottom-up economic transformation agenda.
He revealed that the devolved unit was envisioning CAIPS and SEZs that will host light industries such as warehousing and logistics and supporting medium and heavy industries such as manufacturers of fertilizers, iron and steel, plastics and packaging, and fabricated metal products.
The national government has set aside Sh4.7 billion for the construction of CAIPS in counties to promote manufacturing with the counties also committing a similar amount to the project which is a partnership between the regional governments and the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry.
Each county is expected to contribute Sh250 million and provide a minimum of 100 acres of land for the establishment of the Parks towards the implementation of the project in the next financial year. This will be used to fund the provision of electricity, water, effluent management, internet, security and common transport.
There will also be an online portal through which traders will find markets for their products, both locally and abroad.
Investment, trade and industry Principal Secretary Dr Juma Mukhwana said the project will be implemented in two phases adding that once the parks are constructed, Equity Bank will provide Sh250 billion to support the purchase of manufacturing equipment for industries willing to invest in the parks.
The PS said the government will also establish a Sh6 million fund to provide start-up capital to small-scale traders and youth under a programme dubbed “Viwanda Mashinani.”
He said already, Sh100 million has been disbursed to Nakuru County for the construction of basic infrastructures. Other counties identified for the first phase of the project include Busia, Murang’a, Kakamega and Kirinyaga.
Trade and investment Chief Officer Mr Samuel Ndegwa indicated that suitable infrastructure was expected to attract investors, state support, arrangement of logistics, and introduction of new technologies in the agricultural activities and the creation of a competitive environment.
Highlighting Governor Kihika’s development agenda to the residents, Mr Ndegwa noted that the project will connect the county with investments in the Central Rift which brings together seven counties in the agriculturally rich region.
The establishment of industrial parks is part of Kenya’s industrial transformation programme which was launched in July 2015. The country has 15 gazetted SEZs, which form part of the ambitious plans to create thousands of jobs and boost exports to spur economic growth by 2030.
In Africa, Kenya has the largest number of SEZs with 61, ahead of Nigeria, South Africa and Ethiopia. However, these have not really taken off owing to the lack of a coherent policy.
By Esther Mwangi
