Britian's Financial Times newspaper, in a recent report, said that Kenya's telecommunications industry is a “showcase” for investors looking to enter the sub-Saharan market. It said that the country's “innovative” progress in recent years should spark interest from potential investors into the region. The report, published on Monday, said Kenya's telecoms sector success “works because competition among providers is fierce, spawning price wars and ever cheaper calls that in turn drive business.” The report, part of a special supplement from FT, said that as the fastest growing sector in Kenya's economy, it has helped push economic development forward, with an expected 6 percent growth in the country's GDP this year, according to World Bank statistics. According to the World Bank, had the telecom sector not been so successful, growth rates since 2000 would have been around three percent. The report continues to say that other countries in the region should take note of how Kenya has been successful on the telecom sector in an effort to reproduce similar success. “Kenyan telecoms inspire both other African nations and investors,” the report said. “The sale of Celtel International, a Sudanese company with operations in the country, sold to MTC Kuwait for $3.4bn in 2005 and to Bharti Airtel for $10.7bn last year, showing that highly profitable exits from African companies are possible,” added the report. BM
