County Launches Nairobi Export Promotion Program for SMEs

The Nairobi City County Government, in collaboration with the State Department for Trade, announced a new export-promotion programme aimed at supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Nairobi to access regional and global markets. The initiative was revealed following a high-level meeting between county officials and trade ministry representatives on 23 April 2025, where they outlined the programme’s goals of building export capacity, removing trade bottlenecks, and promoting a wider range of Nairobi-based goods and services in foreign markets.
Under the programme, Nairobi SMEs will receive targeted support including training on export readiness, market-intelligence tools, linkages with foreign buyers, and streamlined regulatory compliance services. Additional measures include dedicated export desks within the county’s business support centres and close coordination with the Kenya Export Promotion and Branding Agency (KEPROBA) to leverage global logistics and financing networks. The trade ministry emphasised this intervention as part of Kenya’s broader export-led growth strategy.
Initial reactions from the business community in Nairobi have been favourable. Many SME operators welcomed the prospect of easier access to export channels beyond domestic markets, saying that previous barriers—such as lack of market information and weak logistics—have hampered growth. Trade analysts also noted that if effectively implemented, the programme could significantly increase Nairobi’s contribution to national export volumes and create new job opportunities. Critics, however, highlighted the need for sustained funding, robust infrastructure, and stable policy environment to make the initiative truly effective.
Looking ahead, county officials plan to roll out the export-promotion service across all sub-counties in Nairobi by the end of 2025, establish pilot export factories, and develop a digital dashboard to track SME export performance in real time. With the programme aligned with the pan-African trade framework under African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), stakeholders believe Nairobi could become a regional hub for SME-driven trade if execution is well managed.