ICT and Digital Economy PS John Tanui speaking during the Decode East Africa Expo on March 20, 2025 / HANDOUTThe government has implemented various ways to improve manufacturing in the country.
ICT and Digital Economy PS John Tanui said the government is committed to building a smarter and self-reliant Kenya.
He said through Special Economic Zones such as Dongo Kundu, Konza Technopolis, Naivasha and Eldoret, the manufacturing ecosystem will grow.
He said the country is looking forward to adding more Special Economic Zones to enhance competitiveness
“Through power, production happens when you can access power at the lowest tariff available and be able to be close to an academic or research institution. That is how we want to enable our country to be able to unlock potential,” he said.
He said the government is looking to unlock the manufacturing of semiconductors by engaging other entities.
According to him, policies like the Cloud Policy, AI Strategy, and special economic zones drive Industry 4.0, with tax incentives and raw material access boosting the country’s electronics sector.
This, he, said helps to shift into a hub of automation and big data and shifting from imports to local production and services exports.
“Smart manufacturing is not just about innovation; it is about creating a thriving ecosystem where policy, sustainability, and local talent come together to drive economic transformation,” he said.
By promoting import substitution and export-oriented manufacturing, he said, the country is reducing trade imbalances and fostering long-term economic growth.
The PS added that it aligns with Vision 2030 and the Bottom-Up Transformation Agenda, ensuring Kenya builds a self-sufficient tech economy.
“The future of manufacturing isn’t just in hardware, it’s in intellectual property and innovation. Policies that connect academia and industry, like the Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, are laying the foundation for a knowledge-driven sector,” he said.
The PS said that Kenya’s young engineers and SMEs hold the key to the future, adding that policies must empower them to create solutions locally, leveraging government resources to address national challenges in a sustainable, impactful way.
He called on young engineers to take up technology by creating and producing more products for the country.
“We have seen the manufacture of fibre using the Safaricom network manufactured locally. Two years ago, 100 per cent of fiber was being imported into the country, today; a significant percentage is produced in our country. This is starting to happen in terms of smart manufacturing,” the PS said.
“We want to challenge the young people to explore and look at what other products that we can manufacture. A challenge to our engineers, engineers are trained for one purpose, to create and produce things, that is a privileged position, let us take advantage of this and encourage our techies to play their role and create products in our country,” he added.
The PS called on young engineers and people who are in technology to challenge the government on where they should improve.
Tanui said that to match the success of the Asian Tigers, Kenya must enable young entrepreneurs to enter high-growth sectors like electronics.
He said infrastructure, incentives, and global partnerships (such as the U.S. CHIPS Act) will be crucial in scaling local innovation to global markets.
The PS spoke on Thursday during the third day of Safaricom’s Decode East Africa Expo.
The third edition of the annual Safaricom Engineering Summit provided a platform for young engineers, scientists, tech enthusiasts, innovators, and stakeholders to engage in knowledge exchange and discussions and envision the future of engineering.
