Kenya’s government urges youth to venture into e-commerce

Speaking at the Kenyatta University during the fifth anniversary of the Entrepreneurship Week, Ndemo said: “Kenya has opportunities in the e-commerce, one can think of changing avocado into lotion then market online. This would ensure products are accessible throughout the world thus increasing market outreach.’’

People living abroad are interested in local contents, says Ndemo, and graduates can capture any social economic and political occurrence through a camera and then upload online to make more than US$500 per subscription.

He further said that Africa has many problems but youth had the ability to come up with solutions.

Ndemo emphasised that graduates can solve the educational crisis in rural areas by coming up with online contents suitable for students in primary and secondary schools.

According to Ndemo, more than 60 percent of rural students fail exams yet there are graduates who are knowledgeable and can use the Internet to upload content to improve the standard of education in the country.

The Ministry of Information and Communications in a statement said it is willing to support innovative ideas that can be used to solve problems. The ministry urged innovators to email their ideas for mentorship and support.

“Time has come for Africa to be more innovative and turn its ideas into job creation. Kenya has been known for innovative ideas such as M-Pesa which facilitates faster, convenient and reliable money transfer with close to 3 billion money transfers per day ,” Ndemo said.

E-commerce has attracted a number of firms. Late last month, HumanIPO reported that shoemaker Bata had joined the online shopping bandwagon, offering its clients information on products and providing faster, convenient and modern methods of shopping.

The Entrepreneurship Week is an initiative of the Kenyatta University with the aim of helping students focus on employment creation.