Listers<div><br></div><div>As my team finalizes the report from the 1st Kenya ICT Board Summit in Bellagio, Italy. We had invited a team of 20 odd people from all over the world to revalidation of our value proposition. The team comprised BPO analysts and marketers, silicon valley venture capitalists, Europe based Venture capitalist invested here, representative from World Bank, country strategist from Malaysia, International blue chip firm executives representatives. from Kenya we had 3 firms (Seven Seas technologies, and Kencall) and a members of academia. The Permanent Secretary Dr Bitange Ndemo was in attendance.</div>
<div><br></div><div>I would like to highlight some of the key conclusions. We are already planning for Bellagio 2, next year same time.</div><div><br></div><div><ol><li>The statement of our value proposition now reads as follows: <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight:normal"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style:
normal"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-family:"Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";
mso-ansi-language:EN-GB">Kenya is a globally competitive ICT partner gifted with
entrepreneurial spirit and able to translate emerging market needs and connect
them with demanding multinationals. </span></i></b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; ">Through much debate, the panel concluded that we need to balance our emphasis on export based BPO, and call centre with support for Kenyan based entrepreunerially based ICT growth. Both are seen as complimentary in terms of job creation. Our value proposition is thus not just focussed on outsourcing but on overall ICT sector competitiveness.</span></li>
<li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; ">ICT is both a sector (firms that provide ICT) and an enabler of all sectors. We need to look at both in our strategy. Malaysia has done this quite nicely even quantifying the size and impact of both.</span></li>
<li><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif">Kenya has an opportunity to be perceived as a world leader in emerging market innovations: Safaricom MPESA and Mobile Money, USHAHIDI, Livestock Insurance (ILRI), Mastercard-Airtel Mobile Wallet product, to name a few. </font></li>
<li><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif">There are companies in Kenya that are now attracting international venture capital financing. Both BPO and call centre companies and non BPO tech firms. Once capital starts trickling into a sector, this is most promising.</font></li>
<li><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif">The global BPO sector is quite big and cannot be ignored. many countries are chasing the sector. Kenya's English language talent and skilled professionals provide us with strong credentials that must be leveraged. The Indian IT outsourcing sector and the Philippines call centre sector took years to grow and was led by the private sector. Government support came in much later. Kenya can learn and fastrack, and government support is important.</font></li>
<li><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif">Government services can catalyse the sector. Government and public sector spending on ICT is substantial across infrastructure, applications and services, project management and capacity. Indeed many Kenyan and international firms have benefited and grown from this. what is needed is an improved framework for technology and capacity transfer for the very large projects which have international contractors. rule of thumb is 1/3 consultancy, 1/3 project management, 1/3 technical delivery. As our software and systems firms develop, they will find that the technical bits are only part of a total package, that includes project management, business analysis marketing etc. Indeed some have made the leap quite nicely.</font></li>
<li><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif">Kenya ICT Board needs to continue to implement on the basis of supporting both export based services and exciting and growing the local entrepreneurs.</font></li>
</ol><div><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif">More from us once the final report is concluded.</font></div></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><font class="Apple-style-span" face="'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif"><br>
</font></p></div><div>Paul Kukubo<br>Chief Executive Officer, Kenya ICT Board<br>PO Box 27150 - 00100<br>Nairobi, Kenya<br><br>12th Floor, Teleposta Towers Koinange Street<br><br>Tel +254 20 2089061, +254 20 2211960 <br>
Fax: +254 20 2211962<br>
website: <a href="http://www.ict.go.ke">www.ict.go.ke</a><br>local content project: <a href="http://www.tandaa.co.ke">www.tandaa.co.ke</a>, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/tandaakenya">www.facebook.com/tandaakenya</a><br>
twitter:@tandaaKENYA<br>BPO Project: www. <a href="http://doitinkenya.co.ke">doitinkenya.co.ke</a><br>Digital Villages Project: <a href="http://www.pasha.co.ke">www.pasha.co.ke</a><br><br><br>personal contacts<br>_______________<br>
<br>Cell: + 254 717 180001<br><br><br>skype: kukubopaul<br>googletalk: pkukubo<br>personal blog: <a href="http://www.paulkukubo.co.ke">www.paulkukubo.co.ke</a><br>personal twitter: @pkukubo<br><br><br>____________________<br>
Vision: Kenya becomes a top ten global ICT hub<br><br>Mission: To champion and actively enable Kenya to adopt and exploit ICT, through promotion of partnerships, investments and infrastructure growth for socio economic enrichment <br>
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