Can Kenya take advantage of President Obamas visit?

Can Kenya take advantage of President Obamas visit?

US President Barack Obama’s visit to Kenya has created excitement, with business leaders saying the GES summit will go a long way in recreating the world’s perception of Kenya.

Through the lenses of the GES summit, Kenya has a chance to tell the world its growth story.

The Global Entrepreneurship Summit, being in its sixth year, brings together entrepreneurs at all stages of business development, business leaders, mentors, and high-level government officials.

The established tradition demonstrates the U.S. Government’s continued commitment to fostering entrepreneurship around the world.

This week, Kenya will be at the centre of world news, when President Obama and a team of about 3,000 business and government leaders and a barrage of 170 journalists converge in Nairobi for the 6th Global Entrepreneurship Summit; the first time a sitting American president will be on Kenyan soil, and as Kenya’s business leaders say, this trip could not have come at a better time for Kenya

“It is a great show of confidence and solidarity with Kenya in the wake of unfortunate events in the recent past,” says Kiprono Kittony, the chairman Kenya Economic Chamber of Commerce.

Entrepreneurship is a key engagement agenda of the Obama government, and the GES has subsequently been hosted by the governments of Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, and Morocco.

Kittony says that; “It is a time to network and engage with possible investors, and also a time for Kenya to showcase itself to the world.”

And even with the expected huge expected impacts to the economy from the show of confidence, a fair share of challenges is also expected.

“The challenge will be for Kenya to take advantage of what GES will bring, the impact will be known after the event, after the hangover, hopefully the world will want to trade with an invest in Kenya, that is when we will really know if GES has an impact,” says James Shikwati, an economist and Director of the Inter Region Economic Network.

However, this visit also presents a chance for Kenya to be clear about its agenda and interests in the U.S.

A key highlight of the GES program will be a chance for young innovators and entrepreneurs to pitch their business ideas as they look for investments from American Business moguls, until then, Kenyans are anxiously waiting for what is largely seen as a homecoming for a son of Kenya.

Report by Terryanne Chebet

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