Kenya Investment Conference in Atlanta

Next week a number of well known politicians and business leaders from Kenya will be descending upon Atlanta. Their job: to raise awareness of the lucrative investment climate in Kenya to the diaspora. It will be held March 22-24 at Kennesaw State University (map). If you’re a Kenyan living within driving range, you’ll most likely be interested in what these people have to say, much less the networking and connections you can make.

In their own words:

The conference will bring together scholars, practitioners, activists, and the general public to examine the role of the Kenyan Diaspora in Kenya’s development and to address how best to harness the potential within the Diaspora for Kenya’s national development. Participants are expected to deliver scholarly papers, workshops, short presentations, poster presentations, and oral communications.

From first glance, it looks like the organizers have put together a rather formidable list of speakers and sessions. I’m looking forward to talking to a few of them and listening to their talks. A few that I’m particularly interested in hearing:

• Ruth Theuri, Uhuru Open, “Attracting Resources and Engaging Stakeholders.”
• Paul Waithaka & Karanja Kimani, Kenya Live TV: “Media: The Missing Link Between Kenyans in the Diaspora and Kenya”
• Session: Capital Markets & Investment Services: Opportunities for Diaspora

If all goes as planned, I will be there for the sessions and will have some interviews. As in all the conferences I attend, if you would like me to ask any particular questions, attend a specific session or interview someone just let me know and I’ll try to accommodate your request.

[Note: thank you to Joshua Wanyama of African Path for bringing this to my attention.]