Plenty of incentives for Chinese investors in manufacturing

The Kenyan Government Wednesday laid out a compendium of investment incentives for Chinese investors in the manufacturing sector as it seeks to attract more investment flow into its rebounding economy.

Industry, Trade and Cooperatives Cabinet Secretary Adan Mohammed said Wednesday that the move is aimed at raising investment awareness in the country to serve as a useful guide in making fiscal planning for investors seeking to invest in Kenya, as part of President Uhuru Kenyatta’s second term legacy that focusses on big four pillars including manufacturing, affordable housing, food security and affordable healthcare.

“China remains one of biggest trading partners in the world, we want to see a lot of Chinese business and investors to come and do manufacturing here in Kenya as a way of complementing regional trade. We will use necessary instruments and incentives to make it comfortable for investors and ensure that we have manufacturing done here as opposed to out of our country,” said Mohammed.

The incentives’ promise which include tax breaks to businesses with plans to set up manufacturing plants locally, the Mr. Mohamed said, also forms part of plans by the government to improve ease of doing business in the country, while also preparing ground for more Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) into the economy.

“These kinds of incentives will not only boost trade between China and Kenya but also will create jobs locally. We will be putting a lot of emphasis and focus in encouraging people to come and do manufacturing here in Kenya,” he said.

He was speaking yesterday when he opened this year’s 4th consecutive edition of Chinese trade show being held in Nairobi, China Trade Week at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC). The demonstration is a B2B matching tradeshow featuring Chinese manufacturing companies looking to connect with local and regional sourcing and purchasing professionals and high-end Chinese manufacturers looking to develop long term relations with local buyers. It is estimated that over 500 exhibitors are taking part in this year’s edition.

Kenya’s imports value to China is estimated to have grown by 2 per cent in 2017, while exports value from China stood at 23 per cent, according to statistics agency, Kenya Bureau of Statistics, which also show that Kenya imported goods worth Sh175billion from the East Asian nation between January to May last year, an average of Sh35billion every month.