Konza Technopolis, the dream of a silicon savannah still on,CS Mucheru says

MAKUENI,Kenya, Sep, 20 – Located 60 kilometers southeast of Nairobi, Konza Technopolis was envisaged to be a sustainable, world-class technology hub that would usher the country into the digital age giving it an economic competitive edge over other countries in the African continent and the world.

Though it is yet to fully realize its potential, the government says the project is ‘moving towards the right direction’.

Now, the Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA) has embarked on the implementation of its Second Strategic Plan that will see the silicon savannah realize its potential by 2025 under the theme, ‘leveraging the gains so far made in infrastructure development and onboarding on investors’ .

Speaking during the unveiling of the strategic plan, ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru hailed the achievements of the flagship project saying that the dream is almost a reality.

“Konza has made very serious strides in moving forward. We have built a solid foundation at Konza Technopolis. The world-class infrastructure that has been laid at Konza is critical to generating the digital jobs that Kenya requires for its youth,”  said Mucheru.

The Strategic Plan is premised on three pillars: Business Development, Knowledge Economy and Innovation and Smart City Services. This geared towards the attainment of the aspirations of the Konza Technopolis.

Mucheru says that the technopolis will transform Kenya into a freelancing hub in the globe as Kenya seeks to transform itself into a knowledge based and innovation economy.

According to recent reports, Kenya has at least 1.2 million people earning a living on various online platforms.

“Konza Technopolis is a vision for the whole country that can be replicated beyond the physical location of the technopolis. Let’s work together to harness the innovations across the country. Our role as the Government is to provide the backbone infrastructure to make it happen,” he said.

The technopolis Authority’s CEO John Tanui said the Strategic Plan will steer the Authority towards fulfilling its core mandate which is to develop Konza Technopolis as a globally competitive smart city by creating an enabling environment through utilization of ICT for socio-economic development.

“The foundations we envisioned in the first strategic plan are in place. Among the strategic projects that are currently being implemented at the Konza Technopolis include the National Data Centre, Konza Conference Facility and Hotel, the Konza Technopolis Security Command Centre and Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), which is a graduate-only university that focuses on Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM),”

Tanui further said that the project will seek to establish a Digital Media City, Smart Vaccine Manufacturing initiative, a Science and Technology Park in partnership with the Ministry of Education, and Dubai Multi Commodities Centre Co-operation.

In May, the Authority announced an incentive to investors taking up land for development at Konza.

The stand premium is discounted to early off takers committing to paying the stand premium on or before 31st December 2021 and ready to start the construction before December 2022.

Already, 660 acres of Phase One of the project has attracted more than 40 percent uptake by investors with an additional 1,040 acres of the Technopolis having been reserved for wildlife.