KIEP 250+ is a 4-year programme that consists of six SME cohorts. Each cohort consists of 40-50 SMEs who will benefit from the project’s performance based grant funding to improve their businesses by enhancing productivity, market linkages as well as use of technology and innovation to make them more competitive locally, regionally and globally.
The SMEs Cohort 1 call for applications window was opened on 20th November, 2020 during the official launch of KIEP 250+. The application window closed on 24th December, 2020. The call attracted interest from several SMEs with 95 applications being received. The applications were evaluated against the eligibility criteria and 44 SMEs were shortlisted. The following moved to diagnosis.
Exotic EPZ Ltd
Exotic EPZ is Kenya’s premier macadamia nuts processor and exporter. The business is led by a dynamic trio of Kenyan ladies who are passionate and purposeful about creating sustainable and inclusive agribusiness value chains. The business is creating direct and indirect livelihoods throughout its value chain. This includes direct sourcing of produce from rural farmers coupled with agronomy and capacity building support as well as provision of full-time and part-time employment opportunities at the factory level of which 85% and 74% are from the women and youth constituency respectively.
Prosoya Kenya Limited
Prosoya Kenya Limited is a for-profit, high social impact processor of extruded cereal composites, fortified with vitamins and minerals. The eleven-year old agri-processor provides low priced ready to-eat and ready-to-use fortified blended foods (FBFs) and quality feeds. Its vision is to have an impact on 70% of Africa by year 2030 through its ideology…fighting malnutrition, poverty and unemployment. The company is currently buying indigenous nutritious cereals such as finger millet and sorghum, in addition to maize and soya, from over 10000 small-scale farmers, a number it hopes to increase to 20,000 by 2023.
Meru Greens Horticulture EPZ Ltd
Meru Greens Horticulture (MGH) activities include the production of French beans, value addition, and distribution of the processed products to European markets. MGH has an easy to adopt extension package for smallholder farmers to produce high quality products through inputs credit, technical knowledge on good agricultural production and environmentally friendly practices. The processing factory packages hand arranged green beans that are sterilized in clear glass jars and metallic cans for the export market. MGH is the only African owned cannery in the world and its market share for high quality canned convectional and organically grown green beans is expanding. MGH has a sister company that supports farmers in production of fruits, tubers and vegetables for the domestic markets.
Pasaiba Tourmaline Ltd
Founded in 2012, Pasaiba Tourmaline Ltd is a company active in the health sector and deals in the sourcing and distribution of medical products. The company supplies a wide range of medical items classified into 3 main product categories:
- Pharmaceuticals products;
- Medical supplies – hospital linen and uniforms, disposables, surgical items, medical equipment and furniture, reagents etc;
- Support Medical Equipment – laboratory equipment, dialysis machines amongst others.
Pasaiba procures products locally and from international partners. Its client portfolio includes leading hospitals, clinical laboratories, universities, and research institutions in the region.
Moiben Connections Ltd
Moiben Connections Limited is a medium-sized agri-enterprise wholesaler providing agriculture inputs and services to over 15,000 (small-scale) farmers in the Uasin Gishu, Elgeyo Marakwet, Baringo, Nandi and Trans-Nzoia counties. Its product range includes seeds, fertilizers, agrochemicals, animal feed, animal health products, irrigation material and other farm equipment, organic farm solutions and IPM solutions. The company has a wide distribution network within the region, serving its customers through own vans, motorbikes and trucks.
Gaea Foods Limited
Gaea Foods Ltd. is a potato producer. After several years in the processing space, they identified a consistent supply of quality potatoes as the game changer in the value chain process and made a strategic move into production. The anchor farm is now 2 years old and is diversifying into producing other crops like French beans, Cabbages, Spinach and Garden Peas. The future for Gaea lies in the production of quality products to adequately supply the growing demand. Gaea’s value is quality products, timely delivery and consistent service.
Kitengela Hot Glass Ltd
Kitengela Hot Glass makes bespoke, artisanal, unique glass products for both local & international clients who appreciate their ethos and vision. Their output includes hand blown glassware, lighting and chandeliers, decorative wrought iron filigree, murals, sculpture, beads and dalle-de-verre products (furniture & panels) – all using recycled glass. The company’s philosophy is – recycle, reuse, renew, re-love, reduce, reclaim and respect responsibly – everything unique, nothing wasted. The company has trained over 100 local people in their various skillsets and supported schools and communities. All glass that is used, much of the fuel and a lot of the packaging materials are recycled.
Instaveg Limited
Company’s products are mainly vegetables, and include green beans, green peas, baby corn, edamame beans, long stem broccoli but also grains- rice and fruits- intended avocados. Instaveg aggregates from smallholder farmers with whom they have supply contracts. The company has been packing and selling to local and export markets. Its products are aggregated using trucks and plastic crates. With traceability stickers, they are sold to export companies and local consumers
Pharmart Chemist Ltd
Pharmart Chemist Ltd is a chain of dispensing chemists selling pharmaceuticals and medical equipment. The company operates from high traffic points primarily in Nairobi. The company operates both retail and wholesale outlets.
Greenpot Enterprises Ltd
GreenPot Enterprises Limited is Kenya’s first fully integrated bamboo company, with operations ranging from large-scale nurseries to establishment of bamboo plantations. GreenPot’s proposition is a high impact business experience that seeks to transform individual, community, and national fortunes through a raft of innovative bamboo-based concepts and initiatives. The bamboo forest establishment plan involves a combination of the gated communities plus an elaborate community outreach scheme through which out-growers are encouraged to participate in bamboo production vide a series of incentives and support measures. The company is keen to enhance value addition through establishing a factory whose outputs will provide utility to construction, energy, textile, healthcare, and service-related industries.
Stawi Foods And Fruits Ltd
Stawi Foods and Fruits Limited is a Kenyan-based social agro-processing enterprise that specializes in the milling of cereals and dry fruits to produce nutritious pre-cooked and fortified flours for overall household consumption, and specifically children. Stawi’s products appeal to clients since they have better nutritional content than conventional options thus are able to capture the market through consistency in product quality that aligns to customers’ tastes and preferences. Stawi not only contributes towards the development of Kenya’s smallholder farmers, but also creates jobs and spurs value addition.
SMEP Microfinance Bank
SMEP Microfinance Bank Limited is licensed under the Microfinance Act (Cap 493D), regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya to offer banking services focusing on Group (Microfinance) banking and SME & Church banking. It also has an Insurance Agency which provides insurance services to meet diverse insurance needs from its clients.
Interveg Exports EPZ Ltd
Interveg Exports EPZ Ltd is a Kenyan company dealing with the export of the freshest horticultural produce from our country. The company seeks to empower small scale farmers growing French beans, snow peas, sugar snaps, baby corn and baby carrots using modern agricultural methods (GAP) and providing market access for their produce. Interveg provides value addition to its produce through its modern, BRC Certified packhouse located at EPZA Athi River. The company also provides farmers training in Global GAP, SEDEX /SMETA and food nutrition to enable the farmers grow safe, eco-friendly produce, meeting European standards where the bulk of the our market is. This in turn provides for increased income and improved livelihoods for the farmers.
Mr. Green Trading Africa Kenya Limited
Mr. Green Africa (MGA), a certified B-Corp company, leverages business as a force for good to realize sustainable, long-term social, environmental and economic impact through the collection, conversion and selling of post-consumer plastic waste. Its technology driven collection model enables waste collection at source, integrating informal waste workers, micro-entrepreneurs and consumers into their formal value chain. The company’s world class processing equipment converts plastic waste into high-quality PCR on par with imported virgin plastics. To close the loop, MGA works with brand owners and third-party plastics manufactures to execute three-way off-take agreements for high quality PCR, helping FMCGs and others to realize their sustainable packaging goals. By 2024, MGA intends to have at least 24,000 MTs of plastics being collected and converted into high quality PCR on an annual basis.
Mwanainchi Bakers & Confectioners Ltd
Mwanainchi Bakers and Confectioners Ltd is located in Mombasa and serves the coastal market(s) of Kenya. Incorporated in May 2012, the company plugs a gap that existed after near monopolization of the sector by a few players.
The company’s vision is to reach “bottom of pyramid” customers, as well as the growing middle class, in its value proposition offering.
Paem Company Limited
Paem Company Limited founded in 2012 and operating from Thika engages in processing and export of macadamia nuts by offering a sustainable market to over 2000 small holder farmers growing macadamia while at the same time ensuring that the end consumer enjoys a healthy nuts snack. Paem has opened 18 collection centres across major production area and has empowered over 200 workers engaged in post-harvest processing, most of whom are women and youth. Value addition is done through drying, cracking, sorting, grading and packaging ready for export.
RFH Healthcare (K) Ltd
RFH Healthcare consists of a group of six hospitals offering a range of services from primary care to critical and highly specialized care.
Incorporated as Ruai Family Hospital Limited in 2012, the hospital has grown to offer premium outpatient services at RFH Embakasi, and RFH Kahawa West; quality low-cost solutions through Ruai Family Hospital – Ruai, and Ruai Family Hospital – Tala that target lower- and middle-income earners. The latest addition being RFH Ruaka which is a 20-bed nursing home offering both inpatient, surgicals, and outpatient care to the population of Ruaka, and greater Kiambu County. The group is backed by RFH Specialist Hospital which is among the only twelve Level 5 facilities in Nairobi, and the only one of that class located in the eastern side of Nairobi.
Modana Pharmaceuticals Ltd
Modana Pharmaceuticals Ltd is a wholesale and retail chemist dealing with local distribution, importation and exportation of pharmaceutical, medical, surgical, laboratory and veterinary products and supplies. Its clients include NGO’s, institutions and hospitals.
Elegant Fittings Ltd
Established in 2007, Elegant Fittings is a fabricator of natural stone (like granite) and engineered stone (like quartz), creating functional, durable and beautiful finishes. The company works with large format stone slabs (over 3000mmx1450mm), fabricating these to clad whatever surfaces you desire. Because the company believes that its clients deserve the best, Elegant Fittings is committed to offer the highest quality of stone and workmanship available anywhere in the world. The company has therefore onboarded world-class global brands, including Caesarstone quartz, Dekton ultra-compact surfaces, and Sensa protected granite, installing these products in homes, restaurants, schools, offices, hospitals and hotels across East Africa.
Goshen Farm Exporters Ltd
Goshen Farm Exporters Ltd is a contract- grower, food processor and exporter of Kenyan horticulture products. Its inclusive business model engages smallholder farmers into contractual production of fruits and vegetables. The company’s farmers grow fruits like Avocado, mangoes and pineapples with focus on vegetables like French beans and snow peas for premium quality export to the EU and the Middle East. Sustainability is key with much focus placed on the mitigation of post-harvest losses through processing a diverse range of fruits like mangoes, pineapples, papaya and banana into natural fruit snacks under the private label of Fruitee Snacks.
Appropriate Design Limited
Appropriate Design Limited (ADL) is an integrated building and construction, interior design company incorporated since 2014 and based in Industrial Area, Nairobi City. The company provides a suite of service offerings including interior design for home and office buildings, diverse furniture settings including tailored kids’ furniture offerings. The business has been able build brand loyalty by leveraging on unique messaging from digital channels and agile service delivery that aligns with evolving consumer needs and modern urban trends in the marketplace.
Quinam Investments Ltd
Quinam Investment Ltd was registered in 2013. The company is a value chain integration service provider and primarily works in pulses, legumes, and grain value chains. The company links smallholder farmers to local and export markets through organizing smallholder farmers into production organizations and marketing their produce. The company also offers post-harvest services for quality handling, including offering warehousing services to farmers and training associated farmers on good agricultural practices (GAPs).
Summit Pharmaceuticals Ltd
Summit Pharmaceuticals Limited was established in the year 2005 and its activities includes sourcing, importation, and wholesale and retail sales of veterinary vaccines and pharmaceuticals. Over time the company identified a niche market in the sourcing and supply of veterinary vaccines against neglected animal diseases in the East African region. With increased market awareness on the need to use better and more advanced animal vaccines, Summit pharmaceuticals limited aims to play a significant role in the control of livestock diseases in Kenya and the wider East African region.
By Grace Farm Feeds Ltd
By Grace Farm Feeds Ltd began in 2005 as a supplier of molasses to animal feeds producers. It has since grown to a renowned supplier of raw materials to animal feed manufacturers and has diversified to livestock production. The core activities of the company include; (a) manufacture of high-quality feeds (dairy feeds, poultry feeds, pig feeds, dog meal), (b) supplier of raw materials to animal feeds manufacturer companies (c) poultry and dairy production which serves as the first market to the business manufactured feeds. The business works with smallholder farmers, linking them to the market and to other service providers.
Superior Mwitha Co. Ltd
Superior Mwitha Limited is a family-owned business, that aggregates and processes milk. Based in Kagumo, Kirinyaga County, the company sources raw milk from over 1,000 dairy farmers in Kirinyaga County. This is then processed into either pasteurized milk or yoghurt which is sold within Kirinyaga County, Embu County, and Nyeri County. The company is seeking to implement the Kibbutz farm model concept.
Prodigy Healthcare Limited
Prodigy Healthcare Ltd is a Kenyan healthcare solutions provider established in 2008 which specializes amongst others in providing quality healthcare products and technologies such as hospital disinfectants, dialysis consumables, orphaned drugs, oncology medicines, derma cosmetics and medical nutrition products among others.
Shona Epz Limited
Shona EPZ specializes in the manufacture of garments and PPEs. Its main operations are located inside the EPZ grounds in Athi River with one unit, and plans to expand with more units within the same grounds are underway. The company mainly sells to international markets, but recently started to service the local Kenyan market as well.
Fair Trade Enterprises Ltd
Fair Trade Enterprises Ltd (FTE) is a duly registered Social Enterprise based in Kenya, specializing in the exporting of fresh avocados, frozen fruits and vegetables plus specialty teas and coffees. The Company employs fair-trade principles in its trading endeavors and its vision is to promote sustainable development in rural areas through fair trade farming and the procurement of horticultural produce from small scale farmers.
Afrimac Nut Company Ltd
Afrimac Nut Company Limited was incorporated in 2011 primarily to engage in agro-food processing and more particularly to exploit the opportunity that existed in the Kenyan macadamia nut market. Its core business is the processing of macadamia nuts and macadamia oil to export markets. The company began with a modest processing facility in Thika, Kiambu county. Over the years, Afrimac has grown and has relocated to a state-of-the-art facility located in Maragua, Muranga County. Its head offices are located in Parklands, Nairobi from which administration and logistics activities are coordinated.
Takataka Solutions Limited
Takataka Solutions is a vertically integrated waste management and recycling company. The company recycles an average of 95% of the collected waste. It deals in waste collection, sorting, recycling, and composting, trading, and hazardous waste handling.
Gitugi Tea Factory Ltd
Gitugi is a tea producer managed by the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA). The company processes green leaf into Black CTC and Orthodox varieties that are sold to export markets. The factory also provides extension services to its farmers who are the shareholders of the factory.
Chartered Eng. Services Ltd
Chartered Engineering Services Ltd is a construction company with NCA 4 certificate. Their service offering includes corporate office partitioning; bank branch fit out and refurbishments; stainless steel and mild steel fabrication, CNC cut decorative panels, cabro paving, building construction and renovation among others.
Capture Solutions Limited
CAPTURE Solutions™ provides unique B2B ICT applications to companies and organizations in need to re-organize and streamline their working processes. Capture is based in Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania and is rapidly expanding to other markets. The company provides tech-enabled software solutions for different sectors including agriculture, security, logistics, sales & finance.
Royal Dental Clinic Kisumu Limited
Royal Dental Clinic is a dental service provider committed to giving the most comprehensive and reliable dental care at affordable costs. These services include a wide array of medical and cosmetic treatment such as whitening, bad breath management, braces, teeth replacement, tooth extraction, crowning, root canal treatment, dental filling & x-rays, among others. Royal Dental Clinic’s vision is to be the national leader in oral healthcare anchored by integrity, excellence, customer focus, and affordable access as its core values.
Ditco Engineering and Construction Company Ltd
Ditco engineering and construction company is a woman-owned and led enterprise incorporated in 2008. It has operations in various counties across the country and its suite of products and services include; (a) manufacturing and fabrication of telecom network accessories – telecom fiber, data centers and solar, (b) network design and installation of telecom network elements – fiber to site, fiber to building, fiber to home, data center, solar, (c) civil structures fabrication – telecom tower design and fabrication, (d)turnkey projects
North Rift Dairy Farmers Company Limited
North Rift Dairy is a milk aggregating company based in Timboroa, Uasin Gishu County. The company bulks milk from 700 active milk suppliers spread across several regions in the North Rift. The company chills the milk and delivered to milk processors, the primary milk off-takers. North Rift has also ventured into other farmers’ support services such as sale of animal feeds, mineral supplements, and AI extension services. These inputs are either sold in cash or advanced to the farmers against their monthly milk deliveries.
Athi Farm Exporters Ltd
Athi Farms is a Kenyan owned, grower and exporter of a wide array of horticultural produce targeting Europe, U.S.A and Asian markets. The company continues to comply with local and global food safety protocols that have endeared it to various international clients thus guaranteeing repeat business, consistent cashflows and an overall positive impact to its farmers and employees.
Africa Digital Media Institute
The Africa Digital Media Institute (ADMI) is an innovative learn and work social enterprise where young creatives get the training, mentorship, and resources they need to turn their passion into a profession. ADMI’s unique learn and work model incorporates high spec technical training, both in and outside the classroom. It consists of four components – industry exposure, work experience, internship, and career launchpad. Through this model, ADMI students not only gain classroom knowledge, but also acquire soft skills and practical training in their respective industries.
Animix Limited
Animix is an animal health and nutrition company that specializes in the provision of solutions and services geared towards enhancement of animal health and nutrition. They partner with reputable international companies that guarantee safety, efficacy, quality, reliability and performance of their products all the time. The company manufactures a diverse range of premixes for the animal feed industry in the region. Its range of products includes feed additives, premixes, veterinary medicines and acaricide. Its mission is to improve the health and performance of animals by providing innovative and natural solutions.
The SMEs Cohort 2 call for applications window will be opening soon and will remain open for 4 weeks. Eligible SMEs are encouraged to apply.