The government has launched a Sh495m flagship project for the Export Processing Zone in Gatanga constituency Murang’a county.
The industrial hub will revolutionise the manufacturing sector by increasing the country’s manufacturing capacity and overall GDP.
The hub sits on a 500-acre piece of land, part of the 1200 acres ceded by Delmonte Kenya Limited to the county government. It will begin its operations in November.
The groundbreaking ceremony and laying of the foundation stone for the mega industrial project was inaugurated by the CS Ministry of Investments Trade and Industry, Salim Mvurya.
The CS said the launch is critical to the country’s economic growth and will create direct and indirect jobs for thousands of young people in agriculture.
“This hub will create jobs and improve the standards of living for the people of Kenya and that is why we are hastening the pace of its implementation” he said
“This project is well placed in the national plan for the national government and very critical in the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda which has set priority for manufacturing,” he added
The industrial hub is expected to attract new investments and strengthen Kenya's position in the global market.
“Already we have signed the Economic Partnership Agreement with the European Union,” he said
He said the government has signed another agreement with the African continental free trade area that will provide a market for 1.2 billion people
“The government is fully committed to creating a business environment conducive to investment, innovation and sustainable growth”, he said.
Governor Irungu Kang’ata said the entire land will be industrial. A few acreages will host other key amenities, including a teaching and referral hospital, educational institutions, county offices, affordable housing and a public park.
“We had the option of subdividing this land for private purposes but we decided to make it an industrial hub where we will set up factories which will open up our county and create massive employment for our people,” Kangata said.
“This project will provide an avenue for us to foster both domestic and foreign private investment that will bring key contributions to the economic growth of the county and the country. Moreover, our farmers will have a wide market for their farm produce,” he added
Currently, the EPZ programme employs over 75,000 people directly in the country, and this number is set to rise with the creation of four more industrial hubs in Kirinyaga, Nakuru, Busia, and Eldoret.
Murang’a’s EPZA first phase is set to create employment for over 3000 people directly and even more indirectly as a result of backward linkages.
