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Lessons from UAE and how we catch up

Aerial view of Dubai Palm Jumeirah island, United Arab Emirates. [iStockphoto]

At the World Trade Center in Dubai days ago, a coffee shop executive noticed my Kenyan wrist band. He stepped back, wagged a finger and after a blank stare, put me on my defense.

The object of his unease was the fact that his chain, with branches in Europe, US and the Middle East, no longer gets ample coffee supplies from Kenya, a market they have trusted for decades.

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