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Overview
Agriculture is the mainstay of the
economy, providing livelihood to approximately 75 per
cent of the population. There is considerable scope for
diversification and expansion of the agricultural sector
through accelerated food crop production and increase of
non-traditional exports. There are also opportunities
for improvement in technology infrastructure such as
packaging, storage, and transportation. Intensified
irrigation and additional value added processing are
marketable areas for investments.
Agricultural Support
Investment opportunities exist in seed production,
manufacture of sprayers and pesticides, veterinary
services, construction of dams and bore holes,
installation of irrigation systems and services.
Opportunities also exist in support services, such as
cold storage facilities and refrigerated transport for
horticultural and other perishable products.
Horticulture
The horticultural sector is one of the fastest growing
sectors in the economy and is the second largest foreign
exchange earner after tea. Opportunities exist in
production and export of products such as cut-flowers,
French beans, pineapples, mushrooms, asparagus, mangoes,
macadamia nuts, avocados, passion fruits, melons, and
carrots.
Agro-Processing
Numerous investment
opportunities exist in this sector. Edible and other
oils produced locally include butter, ghee and margarine
as well as sunflower, rapeseed, cottonseed, sesame,
coconut and corn oils, while a large quantity of palm
oil is imported. Investments to develop substitutes for
palm oil imports are welcome.
Kenya produces excellent beer, utilising locally grown
barley. The country has recently developed papaya and
grape wines that can be exported to regional and
international markets. Opportunities exist in coffee
roasting and grinding, with a further potential such as
in the production of decaffeinated coffee for export.
Sugar production, at 402,000 tonnes per annum is below
the domestic demand estimated at 600,000 tonnes per
annum. Molasses, a by-product of sugar production, is
processed into power alcohol, potable alcohol, and
baker’s yeast. There is also considerable potential for
the expansion of chocolate and confectionery products
for export. Opportunities for investment exist in the
production and processing of sugar, tea, meat and dairy
products.
Poultry Products
Hatcheries for the
production of chicken for both domestic and regional
consumption are under-exploited.
Fisheries
Kenya’s water resources of the Indian Ocean and Lake
Victoria provide vast fishing potential. At present,
deep sea fishing, prawn and trout farming are in their
infancy but growing rapidly. Opportunities also exist in
fish processing (filleting and fishmeal production), as
well as fisheries-support infrastructure (refrigerated
transport, cold storage, etc.).
Leather and Leather Goods
Most hides and skins are processed up to the wet blue
stage for export while investment opportunities exist in
production of finished leather, offering potential for
the manufacture of shoes and other leather products.
Livestock
Investment opportunities exist in the rearing of
livestock for meat and dairy products. The dairy
industry has been liberalised, providing new investment
opportunities in milk processing for local and regional
markets. Non conventional livestock farming, for
example, of ostrich and crocodile farming, represent an
exciting new area of investment. Bee keeping and honey
processing are are untapped potential in Kenya.
Sector profile agriculture
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