French firms are set to invest more than Sh1 trillion ($10 billion) in 12 projects covering roads, energy, food security, health and technology sectors in a move expected to create thousands of jobs, government officials have said. Officials of the French Business Confederation (Medef) Wednesday said the firms include Schneider Electric, Total, Urbasolar, Peugeot, Sse Air Liquide, Semmaris and Bollore. More than 60 business executives under the umbrella of Medef have been in the country meeting their local counterparts from the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (Kepsa), and have identified projects they want to invest in.
“The identified projects will attract more than $10 billion in investments and create thousands of new direct jobs,” said Industrialisation cabinet secretary Adan Mohamed.
The delegation is also willing to set up centres of excellence to help in transferring skills to Kenyans. Medef president Pierre Gattaz said French technology firms are ready to work closely with Kenyan technical and vocational training centres to boost the country’s pool of trained and skilled workers.
President Uhuru Kenyatta, while meeting the delegation, tasked Mr Mohamed to co-ordinate the investment plans by the French firms.
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Ebu bwana spear tuambie hii story ya mafuta kufika 125 .Kuna vile hio story haileti shangwe hata kidogo .If at 107 with 6k hata full tank haijai ambia uhunye aache mchezo on his next drinking break .
They ARE WILLING!!! –“ to set up centers of excellence”. Let them be requested, first to support re-skilling existing problematic areas, including county struggling stalled projects.
France has the best state-run health service in the world; perhaps it we need to request the inclusion of areas in Health Service, improving both clinical and administrative process to avoid i.e. operating on wrong patients.
We also need to be very careful, that the £10 billion does not become a large value added to the national debt with nothing to show for or we a left with a litter of white elephant projects; French firms in financial difficulties will stabilise their finances without breaking a sweat by dumping their debts on Kenyan tax payers, with those CEOs taking home huge bonuses.
£10 billion is too much money, due diligence is required. How many and what type of white elephant projects were done by French companies, and are those same players coming back in a different name. Let us ask ourselves every step of the way, if we have accepted the French to transfer £ 10 of debt into our National debt account.
[COLOR=rgb(44, 130, 201)]Debt is the price of ignorance.
Wewe kwa hiyo yote umesoma wapi wamesema loan/debt. They are French private companies investing into our economy by setting up businesses here. This are FDI not loans.
It is much appreciated for pointing out the investment is not debt, However FDI falls into at least four categories one of which comes in the form of commercial loans, given to foreign businesses or governments.
Among the 12 projects categories mentioned we have roads, food security and health, these fall within government service provision, I guess it is not clear how FDI fits into these areas, how will the investor make profit out of roads or food security?
Try to travel and be exposed. Also accept to be corrected there is no loans here even as you try to classify it into some text book category. They came here after a similar visit by President Uhuru to France where he invited them to tour Kenya for investment opportunities. Well their advance teams and research has uncovered 12 projects they can put money on. People have been selling food since time, they can build industries to support that. Tolled roads are all over usa, europe and Asia. Its only new here in Africa. One of the French firms ceo’s present had just completed one such project in Senegal. Public Private Partnerships are now the way forward.
I already acknowledged the correction in the first sentence. [COLOR=rgb(226, 80, 65)]“It is much appreciated for pointing out the investment is not debt”.
[COLOR=rgb(0, 0, 0)]then followed that acceptance by indicating …[COLOR=rgb(184, 49, 47)]“it is not clear how FDI fits into these areas”. [COLOR=rgb(0, 0, 0)]Which [COLOR=rgb(0, 0, 0)]you’re reponse covered, for example, it was not possible to determine if within food secuirty they were going to take over some farms or cereal boards, silos etc, but you explained they are building industry, value addition.