By B, KNA
Siaya county will host the Siaya International Trade and Investment Conference(SITICO) 2025 to position the county as an investment and enterprise destination.
The event which will be held between October 14 and 17 is expected to attract both local and international investors, innovators and policy makers to unlock opportunities in Agriculture, blue economy ,value chain addition and renewable energy.
Speaking during the official unveiling of the SITICO event, Siaya governor James Orengo revealed that the three-day conference will be officiated by president William Ruto.
Orengo further disclosed that the theme of the event “positioning Siaya as an investment destination; transformative growth through trade and investment, is anchored in the county’s Integrated Development Plan and aligned to Kenya’s vision 2030.
He stated that the three-day event will entail key note speeches and plenaries ,sector breakouts and exhibitions, site visit to priority projects and signature sessions for Public Private Partnership deals.
Orengo disclosed that the event will have three pavilions namely investment, Siaya Energy pavilions aimed showcasing investment opportunities ,cultural and historic sites as well as energy generation options respectively.
He stated that the county is endowed with abundant arable land ,a dynamic blue economy and a youthful skilled population alongside a catalogue of profiled projects and investment opportunities that can be exploited by investors .
The governor exuded confidence that with favourable raking from key agencies such as the Controller of Budget and the Ethics and Anti-corruption commissions that ranked the county highly on indicators on ease of doing business, investors will be attracted to choice Siaya as an investment destination.
“Siaya county is currently ranked 3rd by the Controller of Budget as a county likely to pay its contractors while the anti-corruption agency has ranked Siaya high as a county where you are unlikely to be asked for a bribe and on the other side our expenditure to Development ratio is highly noted to our commitment to development agenda factor which are key in attracting and retaining investors,” Orengo said.
He urged entrepreneurs, cooperatives, professional bodies ,academia and the diaspora to take advantage of the SITICO platform not only the exhibit and network but also to help the county realise it’s objective of catalysing domestic and foreign direct investments, accelerate enterprise growth and secure bankable commitments.