Kenya Begins Construction Of 'Silicon' City Konza
Kenya's president has launched a US$ 14.5 billion project to build a new city intended to be an IT business hub and dubbed "Africa's Silicon Savannah".
It will take 20 years to build Konza Technology City. The IT hub will be built over four phases starting with the technology centres. The new city is situated about 60 kilometers from the capital, Nairobi. It also will be just 50 kilometers from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and 500 kilometers from Mombasa and its ports, will provide a range of facilities suitable for IT companies and businesses to flourish.
Konza is part of the government's ambitious Vision 2030 initiative to improve much-neglected infrastructure over the next 18 years. It is hoped that more than 20,000 IT jobs will be created in Konza by 2015, and more than 200,000 jobs by 2030.
The 2011-hectare site will have a residential area comprising around 37 thousand homes to accommodate 185 thousand people. Over 600 hectares of Konza will be marked off as green corridors, and Kenya Wildlife Conservancy has pledged to safeguard the ecology of the surrounding savannah. It will also include a Modern Business Processing Outsourcing Park, Science Park, Convention Center, Mega Mall, Data Centres, Financial District, World-class Hotels, local and international schools and a championship golf course.
It will take 20 years to build Konza Technology City. The IT hub will be built over four phases starting with the technology centres. The new city is situated about 60 kilometers from the capital, Nairobi. It also will be just 50 kilometers from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and 500 kilometers from Mombasa and its ports, will provide a range of facilities suitable for IT companies and businesses to flourish.
Konza is part of the government's ambitious Vision 2030 initiative to improve much-neglected infrastructure over the next 18 years. It is hoped that more than 20,000 IT jobs will be created in Konza by 2015, and more than 200,000 jobs by 2030.
The 2011-hectare site will have a residential area comprising around 37 thousand homes to accommodate 185 thousand people. Over 600 hectares of Konza will be marked off as green corridors, and Kenya Wildlife Conservancy has pledged to safeguard the ecology of the surrounding savannah. It will also include a Modern Business Processing Outsourcing Park, Science Park, Convention Center, Mega Mall, Data Centres, Financial District, World-class Hotels, local and international schools and a championship golf course.
