President Willliam Ruto says Kenya is the emerging frontier in ICT

Kenya is now the emerging frontier in ICT. It’s global leadership in ICT is growing, attracting the biggest ICT companies in the world.

President William Ruto said the country’s conducive investment climate and tech savvy youth had made this possible.

Technology, he added, is a crucial enabler for the country’s economic growth. “Kenya has emerged as one of the most exciting frontiers of global tech competitiveness, with a high revolutionary potential across all sectors,” he said.

The President was speaking at the launch of the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Development Centre in Nairobi. The centre is Amazon’s second in Africa and will provide young people with cloud computing skills and serve as a base for Amazon to extend its African footprint. “This Centre affirms Kenya’s attractiveness as an investment destination and recognises the opportunities in our digital and ICT sectors.”

The launch comes just a fortnight after the President met AWS executives in New York. “We agreed that Kenya will develop and sustain a conducive business environment that will allow them to expand their investment in Kenya,” he noted.

President Ruto said efforts to strengthen education in the country are meant to enhance Kenya’s human capital – which, in turn, will augment the country’s status as an emerging frontier in ICT. “We will continue investing in education and building partnerships so that we can develop expertise to meet the needs of companies like Amazon,” he said.

US Ambassador to Kenya Meg Whitman pointed out that the launch of the centre is an endorsement of Kenya’s business environment. “AWS is one of the most important tech companies in the world; the fact that they have decided to set up a development centre in Kenya speaks volumes about this country and this administration,” she said.

AWS regional lead, public sector sub-Sahara, Robin Njiru lauded the government’s efforts to build a conducive environmental for foreign owned firms. Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja, ICT and the Digital Economy Principal Secretary John Tanui his Investment counter Hassan Abubakar among other leaders were present.