June Chepkemei appointed Keninvest Acting Managing Director

June Chepkemei, who is the head of Marketing and Communications at the Konza Technopolis Development Authority (Kotda) has been appointed as the Managing Director in an Acting Capacity, at the Kenya Investment Authority (Keninvest).

The appointment by Moses Kuria, the Cabinet Secretary at the Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry, tasks Ms Chepkemei with the responsibility of spearheading strategies to attract and grow investments to Kenya from the current $500million to $10billion by end of 2023.

Keninvest promotes and facilitates domestic and foreign investment in Kenya by advocating a conducive investment environment, developing bankable investment opportunities, and offering aftercare services to investors.

Technology and Innovation

The parastatal leverages Kenya’s strategic location as regional financial, communication and transport hub, political and macro-stability, highly skilled human resource, and a vibrant capital market, in marketing the country as an investment hub.

In 2022, Ms Chepkemei successfully led Kenya’s team in a fruitful bid to host the 41st International Association of
Science Parks and Areas of Innovation (IASP) world conference slated for 2024. She was also part of the team that was charged with delivering Technology and Innovation Jamhuri in 2022.

MS Chepkemei also served as a member of the Taskforce on the Kenya Media Policy Guidelines, following her appointment by the Cabinet Secretary – ICT, Innovation, and Youth Affairs in 2021. She was named among the Top 25 Women in Digital 2021.

Ms Chepkemei pioneered the Konza Innovation Ecosystem Initiative that brings together various industry stakeholders to support the commercialization of Research, Innovation and the Development of new solutions and enterprises within Konza Technopolis. The initiative was voted the 3rd Most inspiring solution by the International Association of Science Parks and Areas of Innovation (IASP). To date, over 100 enterprises have been launched through the initiative.

Stint in media Industry

In 2017, Ms Chepkemei was appointed as the Project Coordinator for a New Institute of Strategic National Importance: Kenya Advance Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) being developed by Ministry of ICT & Digital Economy in partnership with The Ministry of Education (MoE).

Before joining Koda, Ms Chepkemei was the Communications Business Partner at Safaricom Limited, after a six-year stint in the media Industry where she rose through the ranks from an intern to become a Business News Editor, by the time she was leaving.

She holds a master’s degree in Communications Studies from Moi University, a Bachelor’s Degree in PR and Communications from Moi University, Postgraduate Diploma in Professional Marketing, from The Chartered Institute of Marketing of the UK and an executive certificate on Innovation from Stanford Centre For Professional Development. June is a Chartered Marketer by the Charted Institute of Marketing (CIM), UK.