Opportunities in manufacturing begging for Kenyans

By Nguru Kabugi

NAIROBI, KENYA: There is an urgent need to demystify manufacturing and value addition to more Kenyans.

Manufacturers are ordinary people, and entrepreneurs who associate manufacturing with the so called foreign investors only, are excluding themselves from the many exciting opportunities and long term benefits that are within their reach.

We need to ask why such a large number of our young people are mere traders and consumers of imported products, made by their age mates in remote corners of the globe.

Also what it will take to get more Kenyans to also package enough products for the rest of the world. Can we give the world as much as we get? The simple answer is yes, and here’s why.

FOREIGN INVESTORS SYNDROM

To a good extent, this scarcity of Kenyans with manufacturing mentality can be attributed to governments.

Previously, it was the central Government, but now increasingly the county governments are not far behind.

Knowingly or otherwise, they appear to over-emphasize the investors with deep pockets, who can put up large factories, employing hundreds of people at a go.

This may leave local potential entrepreneurs wrongfully thinking that they have no chance to enter the world of value addition and manufacturing in their own right.

Certainly, industries like telecommunications, steel rolling mills, cement manufacturing, 5 star hotels and oil exploration are in the league for big capital investors. But when it comes to food processing and packing, furniture, creation of leather products, among many others, ordinary Kenyans can play the game.

Among those who are smart and brave enough to start today, most will easily earn a decent and honourable livelihood for life. The more successful will be the Manu Chandarias , Aliko Dangotes, Chris Kirubi’s and Unilevers of tomorrow.

VALUE ADDITION MINDSET
What does the manufacturer know that the rest of the world does not? A key realization is that manufacturing is just a way of life, an option to be chosen, the same way that kids choose to be doctors, engineers, teachers and managers.

To thrive there, one needs the usual business skills, like creativity, persistence and ability to see beyond one corner.
Consider the exciting story of the Mkulima Young Champion called Mbugua, a teacher turned entrepreneur.

Mbugua takes rabbit skin, an otherwise low value by–product of rabbit farming, and creates authentic winter clothing. He exports these to Europe at handsome prices.

His tools? A value addition mind, some enterprise, leather processing skills and the internet.

There are many other examples of Kenyans succeeding with leather and footcare industry including Makuti youth in Nakuru with fancy akala shoes range dubbed “Green Sandals design.

Others are EcoSandals in Kariobangi Nairobi, a thriving enterprise that sells internationally.

Ecosandals combines recycling, job creation and community development.

The cabinet secretary for Industrialization Mr Adan Mohamed, was apt with a writeup recently, highlighting the thousands of tonnes of animal hides and skin coming from our abattoirs throughout the year. A huge percentage of these are simply exported as raw and semi-processed material.

Surely with more minds like the entrepreneurs above, we would have one or two leather shoe factories in Kenyan villages, owned by young men and women there.

The people now importing shoes would become exporters, and the thousands of traders of mitumba would upscale to sell new made in Kenya leather shoes.

Value addition is a powerful way to serve more people in more places, with less effort.

For example, a bee keeping farmer cooperative can sell their honey to any corner of the world by simply appropriately packing the honey, instead of selling it in debes.

In Kenya, refining and packing a product like honey should be the obvious thing for producers and farmer cooperatives with anything from a few tonnes of production.

Selling to many people in more places is what earns manufacturers success and respect.

This can even be achieved by first perfecting a single product, and expanding to others. This is the strategy used by Jungle Nuts in Thika, a highly successful processor and exporter of macadamia and cashew nuts.

Such mentors and roles models willingly share and encourage new entrants into the in manufacturing, as evident from the CSR activities of their Jungle foundation.

BENEFITS OF MANUFUCTURING

There are many factors that favour anyone considering value addition and manufacturing in Kenya, and these apply in most of the counties.

Besides the government projects and policies to extend the roads networks and electric power to the villages, any would be manufacturer today has a variety of packaging options to choose from, and a skilled human resource base.

The demand for packaged goods is also rising, as the population grows, especially in the towns and cities.

Therefore products introduced today can bank on the growth of urban population for bigger sales tomorrow.

As far as marketing goes, many innovators use the many retail outlets, distributors and supermarkets as sales and marketing channels. For a wider reach, social media and internet marketing are viable options for those who may not immediately afford the mainstream printed and electronic media.

A host of benefits await the successful manufacturer. The most obvious are potential to make great returns and own a well know brand name. As a social benefit, once gets satisfactions of employing many others. This is a priceless privilege to create jobs and impact livelihoods and families positively.

There is a rainbow of manufacturing and value addition opportunities of manageable sizes, waiting to be grabbed by anyone caring to look. Starting with primary products, almost all need new Manufacturers in Kenya.

Even seemingly mature industries like dairy, still have a lot more room for new processors and new brands of yoghurts, mala, fresh milk, butter and ghee.

The time for Kenyans to go for these is now.

@Nguru Kabugi markets made in Kenya products on the internet. Email : [email protected]