Sh7bn business park to be built in Nairobi
A group of international investors plans to set up a Sh7 billion industrial park in Nairobi, to cash in on the growing demand for a conducive environment for local manufacturers.
The facility, named Infinity Industrial Park, is expected to be completed in two years. It will sit on a 200-acre plot at Utawala in the Eastlands.
Abacus Property Consultants, an international real estate firm with operations in East Africa, India and Dubai, and which will manage the project, said the premises would provide the necessary industrial infrastructure and services to manufacturers on lease.
“We realised that industries are expanding at a very fast rate in Kenya, which is not matched with the rate of growth in infrastructure. Such facilities are instrumental in helping the country attain the newly industrialised countries’ status it has envisioned in the Vision 2030 blueprint,” Abacus country director Ashok Shah said.
FOREIGN INVESTORS
Various studies have cited lack of proper infrastructure and high cost of energy as some of the factors keeping foreign investors away.
The country is eyeing a double-digit growth rate in the near-term and a middle-income status by 2030, driven by growth in manufacturing industries, agriculture, communication and tourism.
Mr Ashok said the park, through manufacturing enterprises and support facilities, would create over 20,000 jobs directly.
“Most manufacturers in the park are expected to target export markets,” he said.
It will have a police station, a hospital, power sub-station, sewerage and water treatment facilities, and a recreational area. There will also be a commercial area with offices, banks, restaurants and shopping outlets.
ONE-STOP CENTRE
The government has been working to make Kenya a preferred destination for foreign investors eyeing the East African market.
Nairobi was last week named the most strategic city for multinationals targeting the African market due to its expansive dual air connectivity with Africa and the rest of the world.
President Uhuru Kenyatta said two weeks ago that the government would set up a one-stop centre where local and foreign investors can access all the services required to start and run a business.