Advisory Board Portrait : James MWORIA

Today with James MWORIA, Group Chief Executive Officer, Centum Investment, Kenya.

How would you assess the current investment climate in Africa?  

The Africa investment climate is generally positive, underpinned by improved political and governance systems, a young and vibrant component of the demographic structure, technological leapfrogging, better economic management, a constantly improving quality of human resource and immense untapped natural resources.  

Africa is poised for significant economic growth with 9 out of the top 20 world fastest growing economies being African countries. These include Niger, Senegal, Libya, Rwanda, Ivory Coast, Djibouti, Ethiopia, the Gambia, and Benin. African economies are becoming more sophisticated and industrialized, as opposed to the traditional overreliance on agriculture and production of raw materials.

Regional market initiatives such as the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) covering 1.3 billion people across 55 countries offer hope for evening out of regulatory hurdles and eliminating trade barriers that have for decades held back corporate growth and expansion within the continent.  

Infrastructure deficits and political unrest, such as the multiple political coups in West Africa over the last one year, are still a blot on Africa’s investment climate, but there are still numerous examples of peaceful transitions that offer evidence of progress to a more politically and economically stable future.  

Each African market has its unique traits, yet it represents a rich diversity of opportunities. It is important to go beyond surface-level market research and deeply engage with local partners to build the strategic and operational capacity needed to scale the continent.

Key economic sectors that Centum is focusing on in East Africa?  

Centum Investment Company Plc has a fairly diversified portfolio with a focus on those that are consumer driven and have been core to the region’s economic growth over the years. We currently have presence in Education, Residential Real Estate, Commercial Real Estate, Financial Services, Agribusiness as well as Services, all riding on technology enabled solutions to serve their markets.  

In the Education space, Centum and a consortium of other investors has partnered with SABIS®️ which is a globally renowned schools’ operator to set up a platform to roll out 20 schools in Sub-Saharan Africa. The first SABIS®️ school in Kenya is now operational in Nairobi, offering a rich international curriculum, with a pipeline of others expected to come through in various parts of the East African region.  

Centum’s interest in real estate encompasses an offering of mixed-use well master planned urban nodes in Kenya (Nairobi, Kilifi) and Uganda (Entebbe). Rapid population growth, accelerated urbanization, and increased government investment in infrastructure has created a huge, untapped demand for housing across the continent.  

Centum has achieved great success with the residential real estate projects portfolio in Kenya and Uganda, market studies and feasibility analyses by Centum Real Estate (Centum Re) research teams have identified high-potential real estate spots across the region in the next 5 to 10 years.  

The research indicates a staggering housing deficit exceeding 7 million units across Sub-Saharan Africa. The housing gap exists in every town and city across the region.  

Our research indicates that whatever housing model Centum rolls out in Nairobi is replicable in Kampala, in Kinshasa, Dar es Salaam and Kigali. That provides a fantastic opportunity for upscaling, local partnerships and job creation. We expect some exponential growth in this sector with the potential to generate circa USD 25 million EBITDA annual sustainable from this segment.  

In the commercial real estate sub-sector, Centum saw a compelling opportunity to provide a platform for service-focused export-oriented businesses at Two Rivers International Finance & Innovation Centre (TRIFIC). The hub has been designated as a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and a premium gateway of choice for businesses looking to launch operations in Africa while serving global markets. Such businesses are set to enjoy various fiscal incentives, access to a wide pool of skilled labour and robust connectivity via high-grade infrastructure present within and around the SEZ. We are excited for the potential impact of TRIFIC SEZ on the local and regional economy in terms of job creation, hard currency inflows and access to global technology and skills transfer that is core for economic development and prosperity.  

The strategy execution to make TRIFIC SEZ an investment hub of international repute is already underway, attracting diverse businesses in financial services, business process outsourcing, technology, business consulting among other service-oriented enterprises. We have equally seen huge investor interest in both equity and debt capital providers seeking participation in the development of the TRIFIC SEZ.  

Over 9,000 square meters of the first operational office block has been taken up in the SEZ with a pledge to create about 5,400 jobs by the end of 2024. The SEZ has a pipeline of over 200,000 square meters lined up for development over the coming five years

What investment strategies are in place to tap the robust growth of the tourism industry in Kenya?  

Tourism sector growth has been impressive having re-emerged from the dip in the covid period to contribute 2.5% of GDP in 2023 as compared to 1.5% in 2022.  

Centum holds investments in sectors connected to the tourism sector such as NAS Servair, an airline caterer that has registered impressive growth in line with the transport sector recovery on the back of increasing travels.  

Our real estate destinations in Kilifi Kenya continue to benefit from the surging demand for holiday homes at the coastal region on the back of robust growth in local and international tourism.

We are in discussions with co-investors who are evaluating the attractiveness of our mixed-use urban nodes in Nairobi, Kilifi and Entebbe for possible investment in premium hotels and conference facilities. Thus, we see opportunities for growing demand for specific real estate asset segments on the back of growth in tourism.

Young African decision makers must dare to dream, they must be visionary. They must always be very eager to embrace opportunities that come their way and continuously find new ways of doing things. They should employ technological innovations to solve local challenges  

The young decision makers must have thirst for knowledge, be eager to learn problem solving from history, their peers and other leaders across the world.  

They must know that there is no shortcut to acquiring a good name other than being ethical and of high integrity.  

Young leaders must build networks that can open doors for them across the world. They must only invest in sustainable businesses and offer a path for future generations to follow in future.