Korean Firms To Build A Manufacturing Center At Konza

The Korea Electronic Association (KEA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Kenya to set up a $1.4 million tech manufacturing support center at Konza Technopolis.

Established in 1976, KEA brings together over 370 Korea’s major electronics and information technology companies such as LG Electronics, Samsung Electronics, research institutions and academia.

The plant will be developed in four phases: business planning, training in electronics manufacturing and product development, installation of manufacturing equipment and operational systems, and expansion of operations with enterprise support systems.

Additionally, the center will support product launches targeting 30 products per year with a reduced average production period of 6 months, while targeting to train 100 people and support over 100 businesses.

The Korean companies targeting to set up include xVic which produces portable golf aiming guide, Beaunex, producers of facial mask, Atech Net, makers of holographic imaging devices, Dooni Corp makers of sound effectors, Illumino makers of UV LED portable counterfeit detectors, Rollingseeds, makers of simpe UX game consoles, Share & Share producers of smart doorlocks, Goonies manufacturing smart edutainment devices and Sonic Dutch Korea manufacturers of coffee extractors.

Other companies include; Maete makers of AI functional memory foam pillows, Gateways who produce indoor fitness gaming devices, Boomengine makers of smart flower pots, AWESOMEAB makers of Eco-friendly portable water warmers, Worldhumantec, producers of personal portable self-defence devices, Gkkelab manufacturing self-temperature controlling heat gloves, Honey IT manufacturing ELF sleep care devices and BOREA making detachable air sterilizer for vehicles.

Konza Technopolis has been a major beneficiary of Korean-funded projects which include the Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (Ke-AIST) modelled after the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and set to open early next year for postgraduate studies in Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Similarly, the Konza Media City project received $294 million during the recently held Korea-Africa Summit in June.

“This MOU heralds a new dawn for Konza Technopolis as we enter the next phase of development whereby Korean electronic companies, through their association, will establish a manufacturing support center enabling the various Korean companies to produce their products locally,” John Paul Okwiri, CEO of Konza said.

The new project is expected to take between 2 to 3 years to be completed.