In Eldoret, Chief Administrative Secretary for Industrialization, Mr. Lawrence Karanja presided over the opening at KEBS regional office, PS. Kirimi Kaberia presided over the opening of Mombasa Biashara Centre at KEBS coast regional offices and CS Betty Maina officially opened the Kisumu one at Kenya Industrial Research Development Institute (KIRDI) offices. KIE showcased its products and sensitised the public about its mandate and contribution to the industrialisation agenda.

CS Betty Maina, PS for Industrialization Ambassador, Kirimi Kaberia, KNCCI and Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) officials toured our stand. Our stand also attracted hundreds of SME owners and event attendants.

KIE through the Managing Director and a team joined other State Agencies and State departments to participate in a tree planting exercise on May 9^th 2020, organized by Principal Secretaries; Dr. Francis Owino, Nancy Karigithu, Dr. Belio Kipsang, Amb. Simon Nabukwesi, Harry Kimutai, Alfred Cheruiyot and Dr. Julius Jwan who led the Ministries’ respective staff members in planting 2,000 indigenous trees in Kibiko block of Ngong Forest. The company participated in the exercise as a show of our commitment and contribution towards the Greening Kenya Campaign which aims at attaining a 10% forest cover.

Tree planting Exercise at Ngong’ Hills Forest, Kajiado County – May 18^th 2020

The company through the Managing Director and a KIE team joined Deputy Head of Public Service Wanyama Musiambo together with Principal Secretaries Joseph Njoroge (Ministry of Energy), Dr Francis Owino (State Department for Industrialization) and Saitoti Torome (State Department for Planning) for a tree-planting activity at Ngong Hills Forest, Kajiado County where 8,000 indigenous trees were planted. The four senior government Officials were part of a larger delegation of PSs hosted by the Kenya Forest Service for tree planting activities in various forest stations within the Nairobi Conservancy.

The CS visited Squared Garments limited, an enterprise that knits school uniforms, protective gears of all kinds among other textile products. Squared Garments is incubated and supported by KIE to supply textile products in the whole of North Rift and South Rift Counties.

Ms. Betty Maina also toured Buffalo Millers, another project funded and supported by KIE from inception. The miller started as a small milling plant in year 2015 to supply Eldoret and its vicinities but has now grown its market reach to supply the entire country and the neighbouring Uganda and South Sudan Countries.

Mr. Evans Killi, a director at the miller attributed their quick expansion to their business strategy, hard work, risk taking and KIE’s enormous credit support to purchase modern machinery that can mill up to 50 tonnes of maize and wheat flour daily.

The Cabinet Secretary encouraged KIE to continue supporting such Agro – processing industries to ensure Kenya is food secured.

The Managing Director made a presentation on the role of KIE in the country’s industrialization agenda. The event provided the company an opportunity to create awareness on The KIE brand as well as to engage and interact with the entrepreneurs & professionals on how to best promote industrialization in the western region.