This archive report was first published on 24 June 2021.
On June 22, 2021, Konza Technopolis Development Authority (KoTDA) held an investor conference and partners forum, where the agency managing the development of Kenya's first smart city announced its commitment to supporting investors.
KoTDA leases land to investors at various fee grades, including stand premium, a one-off payment, and annual ground rent. To encourage early takers, the agency has discounted the stand premium for investors who commit to paying the fee before December 31, 2021, and are ready to start construction by the end of next year.
ICT and Innovation Principal Secretary Jerome Ochieng made the announcement during the investor conference, stating that the government is committed to supporting investors to take up space at Konza Technopolis. He noted that the government's commitment is reinforced by its actions and the recent budget allocation for the 2021-22 year, where over 70 per cent of the budget has been set aside for the development of the project.
During the conference, investors who have made payments for their parcels of land were given access to the property. These investors include Kenya Electricity Transmission Company, National Construction Authority, Sosian Energy, Bigen Global, Vijay Sandhu, Geonet Technologies, GS1 Kenya, and Makueni Housing Co-operative.
More than 40 per cent of the 400 acres in Phase One of the project has been taken up by investors. The Treasury allocated about Sh18 billion to the Konza city project in the 2021-22 financial year.
KoTDA Chairman Reuben Mutiso stated that other facilities, such as conferencing, security command centre, and apartments, are ongoing in addition to the development of the National Data Centre and horizontal infrastructure.
