Promoting bilateral trade between Kenya and China

Nov 3, 2023 - 11:42

(L-R) Preston Mendenhall, Country Head, Kenya, Rendeavour and Kin W. Xian, Chairman, Guangdong Chamber of Commerce, sign trade agreement in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, China.

Kiambu,

Friday, November 3, 2023

KNA by Wangari Ndirangu

Tatu City, the 5,000-acre Special Economic Zone (SEZ) has signed a partnership agreement with the Kenya Guangdong general chamber of commerce to promote bilateral trade between Kenya and China.

The agreement, signed in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong Province, establishes links between Guangdong’s business community and Tatu City, which provides a seamless platform for market entry for Chinese companies to Africa.

According to Preston Mendenhall, country head of Rendeavour, developer of Tatu City who was speaking to the media on Thursday in Kiambu town, Chinese companies are among the most active at Tatu City SEZ, the first operational in Kenya.

“We are seeing a surge in investment from highly-entrepreneurial Chinese companies diversifying their global manufacturing bases to serve international clients,” Mendenhall said in a press release.

Kenya and Tatu City, he said, offers the perfect platform, with ample labour and easy access to international markets, as well as over one billion consumers on the continent.

The Kenya Guangdong General Chamber of Commerce Chairman Kin W. Xian said they were delighted to partner with Tatu City to support the achievement of their mission to promote economic cooperation, trade and investment between Africa and Guangdong.

Guangdong Province, known as the economic powerhouse of China, ranks number two in exports to Kenya and number one for imports from Kenya, according to Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Observatory of Economic Complexity.

MIT ranks countries based on the amount of useful knowledge embedded in it and the ranking is based on the idea that a country's economy grows as the complexity and specialization of its products increases.

Last month, President William Ruto attended the 3rd Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing, where he signed 10 investment agreements with Chinese companies.

With more than 75 Kenyan, regional and multi-national companies, Tatu City is Kenya’s first operational Special Economic Zone, offering low corporate taxes, import duty exemptions, zero-rated VAT and zero withholding tax.

Courtesy; KNA