Kirinyaga County is emerging as Kenya’s benchmark for the implementation of County Aggregation and Industrial Parks (CAIPs), with other counties visiting to learn from its successful model as it positions itself as a leading destination for agro-industrial investment.
Bungoma County’s Department of Trade, Energy and Industrialization on Wednesday toured the County Aggregation and Industrial Park (CAIP) at Sagana to benchmark on its implementation ahead of rolling out a similar project back home. The visit follows an earlier benchmarking mission by Kitui County, further cementing Kirinyaga’s position as a national leader in industrial park development.
The CAIP is one of the flagship developments within the 252-acre Sagana Agro-Industrial City, a designated Special Economic Zone (SEZ) located in Ndia Constituency. Once fully developed, the industrial city is expected to create more than 10,000 direct jobs and a further 100,000 indirect employment opportunities while transforming Kirinyaga into a major manufacturing, processing and export hub.
The expansive development will also host an Export Processing Zone (EPZ), agro-processing industries, hotels, a golf course, affordable housing projects and other commercial investments, making it one of the country’s most ambitious county-led industrialization initiatives.
The benchmarking visit comes as the CAIP enters its final phase of construction, with the project now 96 per cent complete. Eight warehouses have already been completed, while the County Government has begun onboarding investors interested in establishing industries at the park ahead of its commissioning.
Governor Anne Waiguru welcomed the Bungoma delegation, saying county-to-county learning continues to strengthen devolution and accelerate economic development across the country.
“County-to-county learning remains one of the greatest strengths of devolution, and we are glad to share our experience in advancing agro-industrialisation and value addition,” the Governor said.
Kirinyaga Investment Development Authority (KIDA) Chairman Michael Ndwiga said only a few finishing works remained before the project is completed. “The project is now 96 per cent complete and what remains are the final touches, mainly landscaping and cabro works,” Ndwiga said.
He said the county had already gazetted KIDA regulations, paving the way for investor onboarding. “Investors are already submitting applications. They are evaluated and, once they qualify, they are issued with lease agreements to establish industries at the park,” he said.
Ndwiga said early investor onboarding would ensure industries begin setting up operations immediately upon completion of the park, accelerating value addition, job creation and investment in the county.
Bungoma County Chief Officer for Trade, Energy and Industrialization Stephen Wamalwa said the delegation selected Kirinyaga because of the remarkable progress it has made in implementing its County Aggregation and Industrial Park.
“We came to Kirinyaga because they are way ahead of us in the implementation of CAIPs. We wanted to benchmark and collect lessons that will help us implement ours,” Wamalwa said.
He said the delegation had gained practical insights that would improve implementation in Bungoma and help speed up completion of its own project.
“We have gained valuable insights that we can apply back home. They will help us move faster and also push our contractor to pull up his socks,” he said.
Wamalwa noted that the team had also benchmarked in Meru and Laikipia counties but found Kirinyaga to be the most advanced.
“We have visited Meru and Laikipia too, but Kirinyaga is ahead of the rest. We appreciate the support we have received from the County Government and KIDA, and we hope to come back for more benchmarking,” he added.
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