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"helping Small Business Owners Scale the Steps to Business Success"

"helping Small Business Owners Scale the Steps to Business Success"
Symbol of Hope for Small Businesses in East Africa

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

The "SME HANDBOOK GOES ONLINE"

The SME Handbook is the first ever comprehensive Handbook in Kenya with Information, services and products targeting to empower small business owners. You can now access the book online. The Handbook was launched on 14th September, 2011 at the Laico Regency by then Minister for Trade, Hon. Chirau Ali Mwakwere. Due to the overwhelming demands for copies, it is now available online. To buy, click on the link below: http://www.ebookstore.co.ke/product/the-sme-handbook/ The Information in the handbook has been packaged into four main categories as follows: 1. Information on the Small and Medium Enterprise Sector by experts and stakeholders This section has articles written by people who work or teach about the sector and understand it on its dynamics and what drives it. 2. Information on business skills This section has quick-read articles on the ABCs of running a business e.g writing a business plan, registering a business, investing your money, qualifying for a business loan, protecting your innovations and inventions, finding a market for your products e.t.c 3. Information on Government Services Available to small businesses in Kenya, Public agencies and other statutory bodies) including trade attaches in various missions abroad, and local contacts of district offices for various Ministries i.e. Ministry of Trade, Ministry of Industrialization, Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Ministry of Fisheries, and Ministry of Planning and National Development 4. Information on Business Member Organizations (BMO’S) that support the growth and development of small businesses in Kenya and donor and development partners targeting small business owners. The Handbook has profiled BMOs from various parts of the country that support small businesses. The Handbook also has a catalogue section where you can get contact details of all the banks, micro-finance institutions, insurance companies and agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations dealing with small business owners. http://www.ebookstore.co.ke/product/the-sme-handbook/ Kind Regards Lydiah Njoroge Programmes Director Small and Medium Enterprise Support, East Africa http://www.ebookstore.co.ke/product/the-sme-handbook/

Friday, May 18, 2012

“MSE INNOVATORS AND TECHNOLOGY PROVIDERS EXHIBITION,”

INVITATION TO THE MICRO AND SMALL ENTERPRISE TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATIONS EXHIBITION IN KISUMU ON 30TH MAY, 2012. The Ministry of Labour is planning a Micro and Small Enterprise (MSE) Innovations and Technology Exhibition to be held at Jomo Kenyatta Grounds, in Kisumu from 28th May to 2nd June, 2012. This is a follow up to the successful 1st Expo held in Nakuru from 25th to 29th May, 2011 which was financed through collaboration with key stakeholders. this exhibition is intended to bring together MSE innovators, Technology Providers, Research and Development Institutions, State Corporations, line Government Ministries and the general public in one forum for five days; so as to identify the MSE sector’s potential and to establish a good working relationship for their realization of this nation’s “VISION 2030” this will also provide an opportunity for institutions, organizations and firms to market themselves to the public and the MSE sector, especially concerning their products and services accordingly.

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

National Science, Technology and Innovation Week- Nairobi, Kenya

The first National Science, Technology and Innovation Week, 7th to 11th May 2012 at KICC in Nairobi. The National Council for Science and Technology is holding the first ever national Science, technology and innovation week at the Kenyatta international conference center .the theme is “innovation system and knowledge-based economy for national development” The main objective of this important event is to improve the understanding of the interaction between innovation systems and economic development. In particular emphasis will be to review the current status of ST&I in the country and map out the prerequisite for transition to a knowledge-based economy. To achieve this, players in research, technology and innovation sector will have an opportunity to make presentation and showcase their innovations during the event. Participants will include researchers, scholars, innovators, civil society, entrepreneurs, and policy makers. Among the presenters today on the 9th, May 2012 was Mr. Richard N. Muteti, CEO, MSE Federation who presented a paper titled “Entrepreneurship: from laboratory to market”

Thursday, May 3, 2012

VISION 2030 Delivery Secretariat turns attention to the Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) Sector in Kenya

Mr. Mugo Kibati’, Director General, Kenya Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat lead a High powered Secretariat delegation to one of the most active Micro and Small Industrial Cluster known as the Kamukunji Jua Kali Association in Nairobi on 2nd May 2012. Kamukunji Jua Kali Association is one of the 800 Primary Jua Kali Associations in Kenya representing the Metal Fabricators Sub-Sector and is located along landies road on a five (5) acre plot with a membership of more than five thousand (5000) artisans engaged in the production of diverse range of Metal products i.e., wheelbarrows, nails, institutional stoves, shovels etc The manufacturing actors in the MSE Sector are known as the Jua kali artisans operating in around 18 subsectors covering: Woodworkers/carpentry, Wood crafts, Metal and Metal works, Soapstone crafts, Ceramics, Plastic and Plastic Products, Leather Production, Textile products(with several subsections i.e. screen printing etc),Clay/Poetry crafts, Beekeeping, Mechanical Engineering ,food processing, Electrical/ electronic etc. Discussions during the visit focused on technology transfer, innovation, standardization and patenting of MSE products to international benchmarks. The above will contribute to value addition in agriculture, improvement on productivity and promotion of the micro and small industries as the future large industries in Kenya. Issues of the envisioned MSE industrial parks were also discussed where the MSE leaders present suggested that minimum standards should be development for the existing MSI clusters aimed at declaring them micro and small industrial parks According to the vision 2030 popular version, chapter four (4) talks about “the economic vision and strategy: adding value to our products and services”. Among the six key sectors mentioned in the said chapter i.e. 4.3 is “a better and more inclusive wholesale and retail trade sector”. This involves strengthening informal trade through investment in infrastructure, training and linkage to wider local and global markets Item 4.4 of the same chapter talks about manufacturing for the region market and the flagship projects for manufacturing being: development of a strategy for the establishment of at least 2 special economic clusters and the development and creation of at least 5 small and medium enterprise SME industrial parks. This was the beginning of a national wide engagement with the MSE sector and the next focus will be towards a better and more inclusive wholesale and retail trade sector. Present during the above ceremony were: Dr. Omar Mohamed, the Director of the Economic pillar at Vision 2030, Eng. Maliti and Mr. Kariuki among others, Mr. Muikamba, Chairman, Kamukunji Jua Kali Association, Mr. R. Muthama, Chairman, Nairobi Handcraft Association, Mr. G. Wairegi, Chair, Shauri Moyo Furniture Jua Kali Association, Mr. Dawa , Secretary general Kamukunji Jua Kali Association, Miss Lydia Njoroge, Program Director, SMES, East Africa Mr. Richard Muteti, CEO, MSE Federation, etc On behalf of the MSE Sector, we thank the Director General and his team most sincerely for taking time off to visit the Micro entrepreneurs based in Kamukunji Jua Kali Association

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Small Traders participate in today’s Labour Day celebrations (1st May 2012) in Kenya

The Jua Kali Sector Artisans, Small Traders and the Informal Sector Players numbering approximately 8.6 Million workers in Kenya join the rest of the world in marking Labour Day Today on 1st May 2012. Representatives of the MSE Sector participated in today’s celebration by showcasing their products in the march past parade. The sector Employs more than 85% of all total new jobs in Kenya per year.