Trade of agricultural produce is a lucrative business because the market for food produce grows persistently. Trade in pulses across Kenya is a strong sector and whereas women are the main producers of pulses in the country they are not involved in value addition which includes processing. Processing of pulses could include polishing, splitting, precooking, or milling and this significantly increases the value of the produce, making it more marketable, hence creating greater economic value.

Another interesting conversation was about the avocado value chains in Kenya. Kenya was ranked eighth globally in 2019 in the export of avocados with an annual value of Kshs10.6 billion and in 2020 the value of exports had moved to Kshs14 billion. The main export market for avocados is the European Union and one of the main challenges in this market is compliance to mandatory requirements. If we are to seize the opportunity and access the export markets, it is a critical requirement that we continue building our businesses.

Kenya is well situated in Africa, and it is important to grow to take advantage of the opportunities. We are at the center of Africa and five or so hours from the big African economies including Nigeria, Egypt, South Africa, Morocco, Algeria, and Ethiopia. The African population is about 1.3 billion creating the biggest market in the world and after the signing of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), it is accessible to all. Kenya has great advantages to enable us to benefit from this great trade agreement including our well-developed financial services, good internet connectivity, and good access to business funding.

According to Statista, Kenya attracted Venture Capital Investment amounting to USD305million out of which only 6 percent went to Kenya Businesses. This is the challenge posed to business owners including those pursuing the agribusiness opportunities discussed above. We need to build businesses that are able to attract investment so that we can expand and grow. Do we know what we need to scale? Do we understand the opportunities that are available and have the capacity to harness them? Do we even want to grow and scale?

The challenge to all entrepreneurs is to discover if they are able to attract investment. If you are not able to, what can you do or are you doing to resolve the shortfall or enable your business? Let’s focus on building businesses that grow, thrive, and outlast us! OWIT will particularly continue encouraging and supporting our women to start value addition, grow their business, and thrive.

Join us at the upcoming Africa Women Trade Conference and let’s work together to become the business powerhouses we need to be. Sign up for the conference today.

Caroline Gathii, is the sitting President of OWIT Nairobi as well as Risk and Governance Expert, FirstIdea Consulting Limited.