UN launches DigiKen initiative to support Kenyan MSMEs, provide training

An abbreviation for Digital Platforms Kenya, DigiKen is meant to be a transformative initiative that will benefit vulnerable groups like women, youth, and communities in arid and semi-arid regions as well as urban informal settlements.

Under the programme, 150 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya will be supported in accessing financing to develop digital platform businesses.

DigiKen will also offer training to over 20,000 government officials and establish 15 Digital Innovation Hubs to deliver training in digital skills, media literacy, and sustainable AI technologies.

“By 2027, it aims to create approximately 4,500 direct jobs and 20,000 indirect jobs. It plans to impact over two million Kenyan users of digital platforms,” United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the lead UN agency in the programme says. 

DigiKen is led by the UN Resident Coordinator and is implemented by United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), UN Women, and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), alongside the Kenya Ministry of ICT and partners including the GIZ Digital Transformation Center Kenya and the Estonian Centre for International Development.

DigiKen is expected to spur Kenya in achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and enable digital transformation by expanding partnerships across the public and private sectors. 

The launch ceremony on Monday was graced by ICT Cabinet Secretary Dr. Margaret Ndung’u, Henriette Geiger - European Union Ambassador to Kenya, Stephen Jackson - UN Resident Coordinator in Kenya among Ambassadors, other UN representatives and government officials.