The Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) has presented its Manufacturing Priority Agenda (MPA) to the Cabinet Secretary (CS) Ministry of East African Community, Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs), and Regional Development, Peninah Malonza, and Principal Secretary (PS) State Department for EAC, Mr Abdi Dubat.
In a statement, KAM Chief Executive Anthony Mwangi, said that the MPA comprises four pillars – Global Competitiveness, Export-led Industrialization, SME Development, and Agriculture for Industry.
Said Mwangi: ” We discussed issues related to these pillars in detail, specifically in the context of the EAC.
We consider the East African Community (EAC) our domestic market.
Our aim is to strengthen this market and be competitive. Through our Export-led Industrialization pillar, we are looking at how we can aggregate our goods to penetrate markets that we haven’t fully utilized.”
CS Peninnah Malonza noted, “Our economy is predominantly driven by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). 80 percent of businesses in Kenya fall into the SME category. These enterprises are crucial as they are the primary creators of jobs, playing a key role in employment and economic growth across the country.”
PS Abdi Dubat emphasized, “If we are aiming for an export-based economy, we need to start at the manufacturing level, begin locally, then expand regionally, and eventually, internationally.”
The statement said that other issues discussed included Non-Tariff Barriers (NTBs) and how to address these bottlenecks, as well as the need to review the Kenya-Tanzania bilateral meeting and establish action points and timelines for implementation.
KAM also discussed the Finance Bill 2024 proposals and how to address existing duties and levies that hinder competitiveness.
The Ministry noted that it is working on the harmonization of domestic taxes to address some of these issues. Additionally, the ministry has created a multi-agency team to deliberate on how to improve and drive the competitiveness of Kenyan products within EAC markets.