The Principal Secretary, State Department for Trade, Regina Ombam, has called for stronger collaboration between academia and industry to unlock the potential of Kenya’s growing youth population and accelerate the country’s journey towards industrialization.
Speaking on Wednesday at the ongoing Kenya Software and AI Summit 2025 at Moi University Annex Campus in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, Ombam said empowering young people with the right skills and innovation opportunities is key to building a resilient digital economy.
“Bringing our young people into spaces where they can perform at their best is crucial in transforming Kenya into the industrialized economy we aspire to be,” Ombam said.
The PS noted that Kenya’s fast-growing youth population and the expanding digital ecosystem place the country in a strategic position to compete globally, provided the next generation of developers and startups are properly equipped.
“Our task is not just to train developers, but to nurture innovators who can build the future,” Ombam emphasized. “Today’s developer must understand real human problems, appreciate the value chain, and confidently leverage emerging technologies,” she explained.
She underscored the need for curriculum reforms, industry mentorship and competency-based training that focus on building, testing, and deploying solutions rather than passing exams.
According to Ombam, formal education has not kept pace with market and industry needs, making collaboration with the private sector vital.
“We must encourage our youth to focus on solving Kenya’s problems first, and then scale those solutions across Africa,” she said.
The PS also called for a supportive innovation ecosystem that promotes ease of doing business for startups, enables public procurement from local innovators, and ensures affordable access to the internet, cloud credits, and developer tools to lower the cost of innovation.
Ombam also emphasized the importance of bridging the gap between learning and practice by embedding internships, hackathons and mentorship programs into education from the first year of study.
“We need to expand participation of students, girls, rural youth and innovators from the informal sector. When talent is equally distributed and more voices are represented, innovation grows exponentially,” she noted.
The Kenya Software and AI Summit 2025 convened stakeholders from academia, government and the tech sector to explore developments in software and artificial intelligence and their implications for Kenya’s innovation and industrialization efforts.
By Fredrick Maritim
