Finnish companies eye Kenya's ICT market

BY JOSEPHAT SIROR

Atleast six Finnish companies are in the country with an open purse for partnerships in the growing sector of ICT.

The companies are seeking to tap the potential use of mobile services

through local partners working on different mobile applications.

Accompanied by Finnish association for international networking, Finpro, the companies will hold talks with the government’s ICT board and the local mobile industry players.

”Kenya is an economic powerhouse in East Africa and its mobile telephone market is ranked as one of the most competitive in Africa. This, combined with high penetration of mobile phones among kenyans, makes it a place of interest to Finnish companies,” says Eeva Nuutinen, Finpro’s Project Manager.

Ms Nuutinen also adds that with the knowledge Kenyans have for global mobile giant, Nokia, whose origin is Finland, the great number of Finnish spin-offs are set to grow with different mobile solutions.

It is also emerging that after the fact-finding mission, Mixem will be launching a social platfrom in East Africa through Jalumba, the platform that allows people to access and develop local mobile communities and social services aimed at improving daily lives.

”We have solutions in agriculture,health and educational services,” says Mixem’s boss, Markus Lonka.

The companies are working closely with World Bank’s Infodev and Nokia, the leading mobile artner. The companies aim to build mobile solutions in the area of education, healthcare and agriculture. The companies are Mixem, Ympyra,Pajat, Suntrica, Fifth Element  and Star Arcade.