Foreign companies partner with local ICT firms to grow business
What you need to know:
- Mauritius-headquartered Pan African telecoms operator Gondwana International Networks (GIN) through iWayAfrica, is the latest entrant last week.
- “Companies in the Middle East are putting money into the sector, 100 technology companies from India are also coming to invest in the market,” said Dr Matiang’i at a Media briefing.
- Government statistics show an estimated 7.5 million SMEs in Kenya, providing about 80 per cent of total employment and contributed over 92 per cent new jobs.
Foreign technology companies are increasingly setting up camp in Kenya, investing billions of shillings in partnerships with local firms that fall within the vibrant small and medium enterprise segment.
Mauritius-headquartered Pan African telecoms operator Gondwana International Networks (GIN) through iWayAfrica, is the latest entrant last week.
The company teamed up with local SevenC computing to offer online office management services through iManage to SMEs in East Africa.
“The SME sector in Kenya is growing; there is need to offer development information storage and backup mechanisms that impact on net performance and overall output. We are in this space to ensure that our SMEs as well as big corporates have the capacity to work,” said iWay Africa Director Kenneth Munyi.
In late May, German software provider Mambu also signed a Sh3.2 billion partnership with AllenHark Group. The deal was to give the former an entry into the SME sector to sell its banking software that promises accountability and book keeping transformation.
ICT Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i last week said there were huge sums of money coming into the country through partnerships in the sector targeting small firms.
100 FIRMS FROM INDIA
“Companies in the Middle East are putting money into the sector, 100 technology companies from India are also coming to invest in the market,” said Dr Matiang’i at a Media briefing.
Moroccan technology companies also visited the country last week between Tuesday and Thursday with the intention of developing partnerships aimed at enhancing economic and trade relations between Kenya and Morocco.
Government statistics show an estimated 7.5 million SMEs in Kenya, providing about 80 per cent of total employment and contributed over 92 per cent new jobs.
ICT market analyst Jacob Sihulo said the majority of small firms were coming up in the ICT sector because of Internet penetration and growth of the sector that has placed Kenya as the technology hub in East Africa.
