Eldoret, April 4, 2025 (Public Communication and Media Relations)

Senior County officials were in a benchmarking mission in Uasin Gishu County to gather insights on the implementation of County Aggregation and Industrial Parks (CAIPs) and Export Processing Zones (EPZs).

The officials, drawn from various departments in the County, are visiting the established industrial sites to adopt best practices ahead of Turkana’s own rollout of the project.

Uasin Gishu, the first stop in the benchmarking tour, is a member of the North Rift Economic Bloc (NOREB) and among the first counties to implement the CAIP project.

It is expected that the officials will conduct a similar benchmarking visit to two other counties in the Eastern and Coast region.

Speaking during the visit, Turkana County Chief Officer for Trade and Cooperative Development, Pauline Tang’arae, said the team seeks to understand each step of the implementation process.

“We are here to learn from your experiences so we can make informed decisions. This is a transformative project for Turkana, and the initial stages are crucial,” said Ms Tang’arae.

She added that the visit also acts as a feasibility study, helping tailor the project to local business needs and industries.

“We aim to design this project based on the economic priorities of our communities,” she said.

Uasin Gishu County Executive for Trade and Industrialization, Martha Cheruto, emphasized the importance of such collaborations in driving regional development.

“The goal of these projects is to redefine trade and industrial growth across counties. We hope Turkana can build on our strengths and avoid the pitfalls we encountered,” said Ms Cheruto.

The delegation included directors and senior officials from Turkana’s departments of trade, agriculture, water, livestock, fisheries, energy, roads, environment, and economic planning.

Their Uasin Gishu counterparts included Felix Kimaru (Chief Officer, Trade), Isaac Langat (Director of Trade), and Irene Malel (Director of Investment), among others.

CAIPs are centralized hubs that promote value addition and scale up local production, while EPZs are designed to enhance the export capacity of local industries.