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Kenya and Japan have reached an agreement that promises to be transformative for Kenya’s automotive industry. Both countries have signed agreements that could generate almost Sh99 billion in green energy and automotive manufacturing investments. The agreement is between Kenya and the Japanese automaker Toyota Tsusho Corporation.
According to BusinessDaily, Kenya’s president, Dr. William Ruto, shared the country’s success in collaborating with Toyota via X (previously known as Twitter).
“In Tokyo, Japan witnessed the signing of the Framework Agreement for Collaboration between Kenya and Toyota Tsusho Corporation and later toured the Toyota Motamachi Factory,” President Kenyatta wrote in a tweet on Wednesday.
“The pact entails Sh15 billion Meru Wind Farm Energy, Sh8 billion Isiolo Solar Energy, Sh800 million Thika Kenya Vehicle Manufacturers (KVM)’s initial investment, Sh75 billion Menengai Geothermal Plant and Electrified Vehicles promotion,” he went on to say.
In his most recent tweet, Kenya’s president stated that both nations are exploring other agreements, with other Memorandums of Understanding in the works.
President Ruto also revealed that the Kenyan team has been engaging with Toyota about constructing a car manufacturing factory in Kenya to capitalize on rising demand for its products, which he claimed were making good progress.
“The manufacturing initiative will minimize the quantity of used vehicles we continue to import while also creating job opportunities for our skilled workforce. I am pleased that Toyota Tsusho Corporation considers the concept viable. The president pledged to create incentives for global car manufacturers to set up in Kenya.
According to BusinessDaily, the Meru Wind Farm project is a 400-megawatt wind farm planned for an 18,700-acre plot of land in Tigania East Sub-County, whereas the Isiolo solar access program was originally a World Bank-funded project aimed at increasing clean energy access to over 5,000 households.
Toyota and the Kenyan government signed the investment in KVM during the G7 Session of Trade Ministers in Osaka, Japan, in October 2023, to renovate the local assembly facility, which has been limited in manufacturing capacity due to budgetary constraints.
