KEPSA on 25^th September 2024 participated in the multisectoral round table by the Ministry of Cooperatives and MSME, hosted by the Cabinet Secretary Hon. Wycliffe Oparanya at Serena Hotel. The meeting sought to establish a committee for the private sector to engage the government and have a harmonious way of supporting the MSME sector. The engagement was as a result of the promise made by the Cabinet Secretary during the KEPSA SME Conference last month on 23rd August 2024. KEPSA was represented by the Chief SME & Enterprise Development Officer Harrison Ngatia and the PPD manager Doris Olutende. Also in attendance was the Principal Secretary State Department of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Development Susan Mang’eni, the President Kenya National Chambers of Commerce and Industry Dr. Erick Rutto,  Head of Consulting and Business Development at Kenya Association of Manufacturers Ms. Joyce Njogu, Safaricom Chief of Business Cynthia Kropac, the Chief Executive Officer of Micro and Small Enterprise Authority  (MSEA), Henry Rithaa and Charles Mativo on behalf of Kenya Industrial Estates (KIE).

The Cabinet Secretary in his remarks said this will be a standing committee to engage the private sector and the government on ways to support the MSME sector. He stated that the government has a mandate to support the creation of a friendly business environment through legislation, regulatory, and policy framework. He invited the private sector to play their role and engage the government where they require support.

The Principal Secretary Susan Mang’eni while highlighting the initiatives the government aims to focus on through the State Department of MSMEs, emphasized the need to support the growth of the private sector, through expansion and support to enhance job creation for the young people. “There’s a need for structured engagement to raise issues on tax and regulatory framework, through pulling down silos for a greater impact”. She challenged the need to scale the MSMEs through different levels to realize the impact on GDP and job creation.

Mr. Harrison Ngatia thanked the CS for honoring the KEPSA SME Annual Conference as the Chief guest and for the importance this plays in enhancing private and public sector engagement. He highlighted the five focal areas that KEPSA works in support of MSME Development; Financial Linkages, Market access, Technical assistance, Innovation and Thought leadership, and policy advocacy. As a way of assessing the SME policy framework in the country, he shared KEPSA’s current ongoing initiative of carrying out an SME policy index study, which the ministry and different stakeholders in the MSME ecosystem participated in its validation on the 13^th of September 2024. A report on the study is expected in at least one month to come.  He stated that based on this KEPSA implements different programs with development partners through which over 3,000 MSMEs have been linked to funding opportunities in the year 2024.

Kenya Association of Manufacturers representative, MS. Joyce Njogu, hinted at the low acceptance of local products from MSMEs by local retailers and asked the government to make it easy for SMEs to join the manufacturing sector. “Uptake of manufacturing is still low with credit guarantee scheme considering the manufacturing sector as high risk”. She asked SMEs to be attached to Senior retired experts in the manufacturing sector as a way of enhancing governance which is still a challenge. She noted that three-year tax rebates and formalization in a safe space could go a long way in supporting SME growth in the manufacturing sector.

Dr. Erick Rutto, the President of Kenya National Chambers of Commerce and Industry highlighted some key statistics from their quarterly barometer edition where of the 1,001 businesses involved in the study, 75% have a turnover of less than 1 million and 34% indicated to require financial support for their businesses. He indicated production capacity is still a challenge among SMEs and as they even look outwards in terms of exploring export markets, such as Congo, there is a need to enhance the capacity of the SMEs to meet the demand.

To enhance the round table engagement, Cabinet Secretary Hon. Wycliffe Oparanya proposed the addition of key players in the upcoming committee meetings to include 12 members from different organizations. The organizations include; the Ministry, The Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA), Kenya Union of Savings & Credit Cooperatives (KUSCCO), Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), The Association for Micro Finance Institutions (AMFI), Jua Kali Federation, Council of Governors (CoG), Mabati Rolling Mills (MRM), Kenya Bankers Association (KBA), Safaricom, Micro and Small Enterprise Authority (MSEA),  Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) and Kenya Industrial Estates (KIE). The multisectoral round table meetings will be held monthly going forward.