Mr. President, elevate Dongo Kundu to a lucrative business hub

As a midlevel officer in Citibank Dubai In 1993, I suggested we open a branch in the recently established Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA). My bosses’ reaction was “Why? It’s a dead port. A white elephant.” But I had seen the future. Two days before I had met the chairman, Sultan Bin Suleyem and he had captured my imagination. He told me that there were 300 companies registered in Jebel Ali Free Zone. He had set himself a personal target to reach out to 20 companies every month. That’s 240 per year and was expecting a 25 per cent success ratio. This would give him a 20 per cent growth, and he was happy with that.

I was fascinated with this idea and I believed that he could make it happen. I kept monitoring Jebel Ali for the next 25 years. I also made a mental note that I would set up another Jebel Ali in Kenya at some future date. In fact, I made it a cornerstone of my campaign for Governor of Mombasa in both 2013 and 2017. Fast forward 25 years later. Jebel Ali has 7,500 companies, employing 144,000 people, contributing 24 per cent of the country’s GDP, and $87 billion of trade passes through. This contribution far surpasses all the glamorous hotels and airlines that have made Dubai so famous. Why aren’t we doing the same in Mombasa?