Trade Cabinet Secretary Betty Maina has unveiled a new Biashara center in Eldoret housed at Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) North Rift Regional headquarters.
This is a one-stop solution that aims to boost the growth of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the region.
The new center will provide essential business and trade services such as registration of tax compliance, loans, registration of branding, training of MSMEs on production, certification of products, accreditation of systems, promoting, regulating, and developing MSMEs under one roof.
“The opening of the new center in Eldoret is part of our collaborative role under our parent ministry in expansion strategy to reach local communities and MSMEs with timely government services in a bid to spur economic growth and boost trade in the region. We expect that the center will promote inclusive economic transformation by creating economic hubs that enable youth, women, and persons with disabilities to ably participate in economic activities and contribute to the attainment of Vision 2030,” said Lt Col (Rtd.) Bernard Njiraini, Managing Director, KEBS.
Approximately 1200 large firms and over 300 MSMEs from Uasin Gishu, Nandi, Baringo, Elgeyo Marakwet, West Pokot, Turkana, Bungoma, and Trans Nzoia counties are expected to benefit from the new facility.
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Government agencies already set up at the center include Kenya Accreditation Service (KENAS), Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI), Kenya Industrial Estates (KIE), Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), Numerical Machining Complex (NMC), Kenya Industrial and Development Institute (KIRDI), Micro and Small Enterprises Authority (MSEA), among others.
The center also houses modern testing and calibration facilities which are equipped with five laboratories including Food and Agriculture, Microbiology, Organic and Inorganic Chemistry, Instrumentation, and Metrology that will offer testing and calibration services to the North Rift region customers as opposed to sending samples to Nairobi as previously done.
Other regional facilities that offer testing and calibration services include Coast (Mombasa) and Lake (Kisumu). There are plans to expand to the regions of Mount Kenya (Nyeri) and South Rift (Nakuru).
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