Machakos, April 9, 2025 (Public Communications and Media Relations)

Turkana County has developed a work plan to establish County Aggregation and Industrial Parks (CAIPs) in Turkana Central, following a week-long benchmarking mission in Uasin Gishu and Machakos counties.

The exercise, led by Acting County Secretary Joseph Nyang’a, included field visits, stakeholder meetings, and in-depth discussions on the existing models of operating county level aggregation and industrial parks.

CS Nyang’a urged the technical team to focus on detailed planning to ensure successful implementation.

“Phase one of CAIPs construction should go hand in hand with value chain activation. We are aligning this with our growing manufacturing and agro-industrial investments for sustainability,” he said.

CS Nyang’a emphasized the importance of a formal financing agreement between the county and national government, which will be tabled in the county assembly.

County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Trade, Cooperatives, Youth and Gender Affairs, Roseline Aite, noted that the initiative would help establish a special economic zone in Turkana, enabling aggregators to enhance their value chains and boost incomes.

“We are engaging warehousing experts and preparing for countywide public sensitization to support this transformative initiative,” Aite said, adding that capacity building for aggregators will be key.

Machakos County CECM for Trade, Industry, Tourism and Innovation, John Kilonzo, said the CAIPs model is designed to support local sourcing and processing of agricultural products for manufacturing.

“CAIPs were conceived from the understanding that each of Kenya’s 47 counties has a unique economic potential that can be unlocked through grassroots-based industrialization,” said Kilonzo.

The benchmarking mission brought together a multisectoral team drawn from various county departments led by the County Directorate of Trade and Industry.