Vision 2030 Creating Opportunities for SMEs in Kenya

Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) play a very key role in the economy of Kenya. More than 80 percent of Kenyans rely on the Small Medium Enterprises for income. This implies that a great percentage of the Kenyan population is either employed, running or working in the SME sector.

The Government of Kenya is aware of the key role this sector plays in the economy of the nation. With this in mind, the government has taken key steps to develop a legal as well as a regulatory framework that is aimed at providing guidance and in the process, accelerate the growth of SME in the country.

According the Kenya’s per capita income structure, most businesses would fall into the strata of SME. The government, therefore, if it has to make in progress in the development of the economy has to greatly develop and maintain the growth of the SME sector.

What is an SME? According to Sessional Paper No. 2 of 2005, an SME is an enterprise with between one to 50 employees.

The World Bank on the other hand defines an SME as one that is either;

1. Formally registered business
2. A business with an annual turnover of between 8 to 100 million
3. An asset base of at least 4 million shillings and
4. Employing between 5 to 150 employees.

Vision 2030 aims towards making Kenya a newly industrializing middle-income country that will be capable of providing a high quality of life for all the Kenyans by the year 2030. As per the Vision 2030, for the country to strongly perform industrially, then SME sector must be put into the plan.

Vision 2030, therefore, recommends the dire need to boost science, technology as well as innovation in the SME sector by increasing investments in the research and development. Vision 2030 sees one key strategy to the development of SME in Kenya as being the development of SME parks in Kenya.

The SME sector is the force behind the Kenya’s economic thrive. It is now. It is happening. Vision 2030 is not about 2030, it is about now, it is about today.