Kenyan manufacturers to seek advanced technology in China

 NAIROBI, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Kenyan manufacturers will visit China in April to learn ways of enhancing technology, officials have said.

Job Wanjohi, Head of Policy, Research and Advocacy at the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM) told Xinhua on Wednesday in Nairobi that a delegation of manufacturers are set to participate in the Beijing conference on investment and technology transfer.

"We hope to get knowledge on new technologies from Chinese manufacturers that we can deploy in Kenya in order to improve the competitiveness of our sector," Wanjohi said on the sidelines of the Pre-Budget Hearing for the 2018/2019 financial year that was conducted by the Institute of Economic Affairs.

KAM has prioritized 13 sectors in manufacturing ranging from food, beverage and automotive sectors that will uplift the industrial sector.

Wanjohi said China has over the past three decades invested in manufacturing innovations that have made the Asian nation the most competitive source of industrial merchandise globally.

Wanjohi said Kenya's manufacturing sector has stagnated at around ten percent of Gross Domestic Product for the past decade.

"The key challenge facing manufacturers is high cost of production that has made imported goods to be competitive locally," he added.

The manufacturers lobby hopes to benefit from technology transfer from their Chinese peers. "We will use Chinese technology to convert locally available raw materials into goods for export," he added.