Nakuru County hopes to leverage on its geothermal energy resources to become a leading destination hub for business, thereby boosting its national identity.
Deputy Governor David Kones expressed Nakuru’s readiness to become a leading export hub in the country, with infrastructure projects, such as the upcoming County Aggregation and Industrial Parks (CAIPs) and the massive geothermal energy reserve acting as a major selling point for the county.
He told representatives from the Kenya Export Promotion and Branding Agency (KEPROBA), who paid him a courtesy call, that there was a need to integrate the county’s economic strengths, such as geothermal power, the floriculture industry and agro-processing, into the “Make it Kenya” campaigns.
This, he said, would boost the county’s export capacity and enhance its national brand identity.
KEPROBA is a state corporation established in 2019 to harmonise the country’s export development and nation-branding initiatives.
Its core mandate is to promote Kenyan goods and services globally, build the national brand image and develop a 10 per cent annual export growth through market research, trade facilitation and strategic partnerships.
It also assists exporters through market intelligence, identifying opportunities and organising trade fairs to boost exports of goods and services.
In this regard, Nakuru County will benefit from technical support to local entrepreneurs to meet international standards, connecting Nakuru-based businesses with buyers in the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and other global markets.
It will also help the county identify and certify Made in Kenya products to increase consumer confidence abroad, as well as position Nakuru as a destination of choice for both domestic and foreign investors.
Nakuru County is well known for its rapid urban development and its strategic location on the highway to Western Kenya and the neighbouring countries of Uganda and South Sudan.
It is a leading producer of food and dairy products and boasts of a lower cost of living, with affordable food and housing.
The meeting was also attended by the Deputy County Secretary Newton Mwaura, Chief Officer Resource Mobilisation Dr. Victor Achoka, the Director of Trade John Macharia and the Director of Culture Eric Muriuki, among others.
By Jane Ngugi
