Entrepreneurs have the potential to transform the lives of Kenyans

President Barack Obama (left), Akirachix co-founder Judith Owigar and President Kenyatta at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit at the UN headquarters in Gigiri, Nairobi, on July 25, 2015. President Obama praised Ms Owigar's work when he spoke in Washington, DC, on August 3, 2015. FILE PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NATION MEDIA GROUP.

What you need to know:

  • During the GES 2015 Summit hosted in Nairobi, Kenya was touted as the future “silicon savannah”, the “hub of excellence and innovation in technology”.

  • SMEs in Kenya account for 80 per cent of employment and contribute over 92 per cent of the new jobs created annually, according to the KNBS.

  • Kenyan entrepreneurs, given the opportunity to succeed, will model innovation, hard work, leadership, and persistence.

There is one group of Kenyans that may not be getting the recognition it deserves — entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs are those daring souls who believe in infinite possibilities.

They conceptualise, organise, and take the risk of starting something of their own so as to lift other people’s lives and shape their own destinies.

The businesses these pioneers start have the potential to transform the country, the region, and the continent.

Last year, during the Global Entrepreneurship Summit hosted in Nairobi, Kenya was touted as the future “silicon savannah”, the “hub of excellence and innovation in technology”.

We basked in the glow and marvelled at the innovations of young Kenyans that we had never heard of, and, for the most part, have not heard about since.

We would do well, however, to follow the progress of these young innovators and be their cheerleaders.

They, along with thousands of other upcoming entrepreneurs, must be encouraged to succeed.

Perhaps our SME entrepreneurs do not get a thumbs up, a pat on the back, and the assistance they need often enough because we do not recognise their true value.

Let us take a closer look at the role they play and what it means for Kenya.

First, the Kenyan entrepreneur is an employer, in fact the largest employer in the country.

Small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) in Kenya account for 80 per cent of employment and contribute over 92 per cent of the new jobs created annually, according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics.

THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT

Our entrepreneurs are peacemakers. Remember the nursery rhyme, The House That Jack Built?

It tells the tale of the maiden who milked the cow, the man who married the maiden, and the farmer who lived in the house that Jack built.

So too does the rhyme of the Kenyan SME entrepreneurs who provide employment to millions tell the tale of the impact on security as a result of the children who are educated by the parents who earn a living from the enterprise that “Jack”, the Kenyan entrepreneur, built.

Entrepreneurs are role models. It has often been said that our children have no role models.

But the days will soon be forgotten when a Kenyan child had to look beyond the continent for a role model.

Kenyan entrepreneurs, given the opportunity to succeed, will model innovation, hard work, leadership, and persistence.

From them our children will learn lessons that will set a new generation on the right path and positively transform our work ethic. Kenyan entrepreneurs are problem-solvers.

They have to be to succeed. They recognise gaps in the market. They figure out more efficient ways to get things. They provide solutions.

Our entrepreneurs are potential wealth-creators. Potential. If they prosper, the country will prosper. But on the whole, they are not yet prospering.

It has always been a shock to hear that most SMEs in Africa do not survive the three-year mark. Worse, many are stillborn.

One young innovator told me recently that he has a dream to enhance the quality of the life of Kenyans.

He has come up with an innovative concept that would enable people to save money or service their loans.

Having tried, and failed, to get a response from an innovation centre and banks, he is feeling rather pessimistic and cynical about his chances of getting this enterprise going. He did not even get a chance to present his innovation.

Finally, our large pool of young innovators and entrepreneurs will play a significant role in deciding the outcome of the General Election next year.

They will be looking out for candidates who have a grasp of the issues that affect small and medium enterprises, and who have the will to do something about them.

Issues such as availability of uninterrupted and affordable power, access to capital, reasonable taxation, and the age-old scourge of corruption among government officials.

In that sense, one might say that Kenya’s entrepreneurs are also kingmakers.

So to all the entrepreneurs out there who toil each day to provide solutions and make Kenya great, I take my hat off to you.

Mr Waweru is the CEO, WordAlive Publishers. [email protected]