Private sector support is empowering refugees and host communities in Turkana County, Kenya

The Kakuma-Kalobeyei Challenge Fund (KKCF)  is International Finance Corporation (IFC’s) first refugee and host community focused program in sub-Saharan Africa. The program is changing the perception of refugee-hosting areas by attracting and supporting private sector. In December 2023, 81 new businesses, the majority of which are led by local Kenyan entrepreneurs and refugees, were announced the winners of a competitive business competition.

Kenya has been a generous host of refugees from its immediate neighbourhoods since independence. Kakuma Refugee Camp, located in Turkana County in the country’s northwest, is currently the home to around 275,000 refugees and asylum seekers from countries such as Somalia, South Sudan, as well as the Great Lakes region. Traditionally, refugee-hosting areas are not associated with opportunities for private sector. However, with the support of 5 development partners, including the European Union, the Kakuma Kalobeyei Challenge Fund (KKCF) is changing this.

Implemented by the IFC, in partnership with the Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF), KKCF financed by the EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, supports companies, including local refugee and host community businesses, to expand their operations. The aim of the 5-year initiative is to improve the development of Turkana County through socio-economic integrations of host communities and displaced communities. In addition, KKCF supports the creation of new jobs.

The programme is divided into three components:

1. A competitive business challenge;
2. Investment Climate and Policy Advisory;
3. Hands-on Support to Larger Firms.

“Thanks to KKCF we are dreaming even bigger,” said refugee-owner Olivier Itulabwami of KKCF-supported Wicoment Solutions, the first internet provider in Kakuma Refugee Camp.  “Our plan is to expand by creating hotspots throughout Kakuma and Kalobeyei, so that refugees and the host community can easily access affordable internet wherever they are.”

In December 2023, KKCF announced 81 new winners under the competitive business challenge. The winning companies will receive grants and technical support to launch or grow operations and drive sustainable development in Turkana County. 

Among the recipients are a refugee-owned internet service provider and Wi-Fi distributor based in Kakuma; a waste management enterprise specializing in collection, sorting, composting, and recycling; and a medical clinic owned by a member of the Turkana community that offers healthcare services to both refugees and the local host population.

Fabrice Kitala Mupenge and Olivier Itulabwami are Congolese refugees who own Wicomnet Solutions, the internet service provider that was established in 2019 with an initial investment of approximately 10,000 Kenyan shillings, an equivalent $90 at the time. Their entrepreneurial drive, fueled  by a commitment to improve the quality of life in Kakuma, prompted the creation of their company.

Wicomnet Solutions, supported by financial assistance and training from KKCF, exemplifies a growing initiative aimed at attracting private investment, delivering essential goods and services, and generating employment opportunities to refugees and their host communities in Kenya’s Kakuma camp and beyond. Overall, KKCF has chosen a total of 121 companies, across three funding windows of the competition, which are tailored for private sector companies (PSW), social enterprise companies (SEW), and Turkana County-based local enterprises (LED). Goodlife Pharmacy, one of the largest pharmacy chains in East Africa, also opened their first branch in Kakuma in 2022.

Apart from the EU, other development partners supporting the programme are The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development through KfW, and the UK's Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).