- The national government had pledged to provide Sh250 million to each county to be matched with a similar amount or more by the respective counties.
- The government estimates that 150,000 to 200,000 jobs will created once the parks are complete.
Image: FILE
The government has announced the release of Sh1.12 billion for the construction of County Aggregated and Industrial Parks (CAIP).
Trade Cabinet Secretary Rebecca Miano in a statement on Monday said the funds are meant for 17 counties currently implementing the projects under phase one of the programme.
The counties include Migori, Mombasa, Busia, Meru, Bungoma, Kirinyaga, Homa Bay, Machakos, Siaya, Kiambu, Murang’a, Trans Nzoia, Embu, Uasin-Gishu, Nandi, Nakuru and Garissa.
Each of them is set to receive Sh62.5 million as the first tranche of the funds from the national government which is being done jointly with counties.
“My ministry-in consultation with the Council of Governors and county-based implementation organs-will issue an expression of interest for the management of CAIPs in support of their operationalisation,” Miano said.
The national government had pledged to provide Sh250 million to each county to be matched with a similar amount or more by the respective counties.
The Kenya Kwanza administration is optimistic that the CAIPS will help grow industrialisation, and middle income to provide a quality of life to all Kenyans by 2030 in a clean and secure environment.
President William Ruto has stated that the parks will not only help spur the growth of manufacturing through agro-industries but also enhance competitiveness in the agriculture sector.
Ruto said through this more jobs will also be created, income to farmers increased with the country earning additional foreign exchange as well as promotion of new products.
The government estimates that 150,000 to 200,000 jobs will created once the parks are complete.
The parks are also set to go a long way in reducing post-harvest losses and ultimately the provision of a reliable platform where farmers, processors, exporters, researchers, industrial entities and the government would engage in agro-industrial development.
The establishment of the CAIPs came as a result of the realisation that each of the 47 counties has a competitive edge whose fuller economic dividend can only accrue if our focus is on the grassroots.
According to Miano, 85 per cent of industrialisation and manufacturing sectors are in Nairobi and its environs hence the need to accelerate and devolve if real devolution is to be achieved.
The programme is in line with Vision 2030 and intents to transform Kenya into an industrialised middle-income economy offering a better quality of life to all her citizens.
The vision envisages a country that can produce manufactured goods for consumption in Eastern and Central Africa besides making inroads to the global market.
Miano has pointed out that her ministry targets to raise the contribution of manufacturing to the GDP from the current 7 percent to 15 per cent by 2027 and to 20 per cent by 2030 while increasing exports from 10 per cent of the GDP to 30 per cent by the year 2025.