Chinese business magnate Jack Ma
yesterday promised to market Kenya during his tours around the world,
citing the country’s massive but largely unexplored potential.
“Will
I be the ambassador of African industry and bring more Chinese
manufacturing companies here? This is my honour. I will be happy to do
that,” said Mr Ma, the executive chairman of the Chinese e-commerce
giant Alibaba Group who was recently crowned the richest person in Asia.
“Introducing
Africa to the rest of the world, instead of just introducing Chinese
products to Africa, is something I want to do.”
Mr Ma,
who spoke at a special session with budding entrepreneurs at the
University of Nairobi, said the numerous problems that Africa and its
citizens face every day provide opportunities to create sustainable
ventures for Kenya’s youth.
“It is a good thing that
Kenyans see opportunities and the need to change, which is exactly what I
saw in China 20 to 30 years ago,” he said.
The Chinese tycoon praised Kenya’s ICT infrastructure and urged young people to use it as window to trade with the world.
“I
am shocked at the speed of the Internet and I have met very many young
people with innovative ideas that could change the world,” he said.
Mr Ma said his giant company will source for
partnerships locally even as he emphasised that only businesses that
create value in people’s lives will thrive.
“We are
looking for more partners. This is our vision. We are extremely
interested in logistics solutions and those companies that support
payments,” said Mr Ma.
The former
teacher-turned-businessman urged Kenyan entrepreneurs to think about how
the Internet can solve people’s problems, terming it where the
opportunity lies.
Mr Ma asked the government and
companies to pay special attention to young people, saying they hold the
potential for innovations.
“The next 30 years are
very crucial especially for those under 30 years as they are the ones
who are never scared of trying out new things,” he said.
Earlier
Mr Ma met President Uhuru Kenyatta at State House, Nairobi, where
together with United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi they pledged to cooperate in growing
trade between Kenya and China.
Citing
China’s massive population, Mr Ma said he would campaign for China to
be Kenya’s strategic partner in areas like trade and tourism.
“Imagine 130 million people travelling within China. What would happen if a fraction came here?” he posed.
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