President William Ruto has highlighted Kenya’s remarkable strides in technological innovation, emphasizing the transformative power of the digital revolution.
Among his notable revelations was the employment of about 23,000 Kenyans by Apple in Nairobi, underscoring the country’s pivotal role in the global digital economy.
“When I visited the Silicon Valley last year, Apple’s Tim Cook informed me that his company now employs about 23,000 Kenyans, all working from Nairobi,” Ruto said.
In his remarks, President Ruto said that “nothing in the past century compares in terms of sheer speed and scale of transformation” as the rise of computing, ICTs, automation and AI over the past few decades. He argued that while technological change produces “winners and losers”, governments must “facilitate, encourage and champion change” to remain relevant.
Reflecting on Kenya’s “Silicon Savanna”, President Ruto said he recently met a young Kenyan diploma student, Brian Kipchumba, working remotely for a German AI company from his rural home.
“The digital economy is delivering attractive opportunities for young people, to work for employers scattered across the world without having to leave their homes in Kenya,” he remarked.
Citing mobile money as Kenya’s “proudest innovation”, President Ruto said its launch “defined Kenya in the digital technology space.” He recounted how M-Pesa faced initial resistance from banks when it was introduced by Safaricom in 2007, but was quickly embraced by the public for its efficiency. Today it processes $1.2 billion daily across 8 countries.
The president highlighted how Kenya has “exploited our digital revolution to transform the public and private service delivery landscape.” He said digital platforms have enabled the government to “reach more people” and “serve the previously marginalised.”
Other examples he cited include registering 5 million farmers digitally to improve input delivery, launching a digital lending platform for small businesses that has disbursed $280 million in its first year, and deploying over 100,000 community e-health workers to achieve universal health coverage.
President Ruto also announced Kenya is close to achieving 100% e-government by digitising all public services. “In the last one year, we increased the number of digitally accessible government services from 5% to over 80%,” he stated.
Looking ahead, the president argued Africa is poised to lead a “green industrial revolution” given its wealth of renewable energy resources and critical minerals. He called for bold investments in the continent to tap this potential.
President Ruto concluded by arguing governments must stay ahead of the future by continuously asking “why not?” when it comes to innovation. He praised Dubai as an example of how “courage, imagination and science” can drive progress.
