SPEECH BY HIS EXCELLENCY HON.

UHURU KENYATTA, PRESIDENT AND COMMANDER IN CHIEF OF THE DEFENCE FORCES OF THE REPUBLIC OF KENYA, AT THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH OF THE PRICE-WATERHOUSE COOPERS KENYA OFFICE, WESTLANDS, NAIROBI, 23RD JANUARY, 2014 Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen, It is my pleasure to be with you during this historic event as we commemorate the launch of Pricewaterhouse Coopers office in Nairobi !irst, let me ta"e this opportunity to than" Pricewaterhouse Coopers #PwC$ for inviting me to %oin you and to grace this occasion of inaugurating your new office I am informed that this office is a world&class facility with a wide range of modern features It provides a perfect environment that will enable PwC employees to collaborate more effectively as they deliver their professional services, which are essential to our economy I sincerely congratulate you for this achievement, which mar"s a significant milestone, not %ust for PwC but also for 'enya (oreover, I consider this investment a clear vote of confidence in our country and a clear indication of your commitment to our economy, our bright and industrious young people ) and to your responsible corporate citi*enship It is also, broadly spea"ing, symbolic of the positive direction in which +ast ,frica is heading Ladies and Gentlemen, -efore I go further, allow me to ma"e some brief comments about 'enyas growth story, to better put todays event into conte.t ,s you "now, our economy has proven its resilience in the face of the internal and e.ternal challenges of recent years /ver the last four years, we have managed to maintain economic growth at about 0 percent per year Concurrently, we have contained inflation within the single digit range and stabili*ed the shilling at a rate that is fairly competitive 1hese achievements are the fruit of sound economic policies and appropriate structural reforms, which we have been implementing over the last twelve years or so Indeed, we have strengthened our public financial management and improved the business environment, thus enhancing our countrys competitiveness and capacity to mobili*e the much needed financial resources In addition, we have invested in priority areas of infrastructure including roads, ports, water, and energy generation and transmission ,t the same time, we have invested heavily in the social sector, particularly in health and education as well as adopting a social protection programme to ta"e care of the elderly members of our society /ur entrepreneurship, our manufacturing and services, the increasing modernisation of agriculture, and our position as a regional hub for financial

services and multinational corporations, are the drivers of our economic growth (ore importantly, the IC1 sector is fuelling innovation, e&commerce, outsourcing and services e.pansion and penetration ,cross our economy, 'enyans are deeply committed to service, 2uality and competitiveness 1hese achievements, together with the political and institutional reforms that culminated in successful elections in (arch 3456, and the smooth transfer of political power, have enhanced 'enyas reputation in the eyes of the international community Indeed, 'enya is now considered one of the ,frican countries on the verge of transitioning to emerging&mar"et status Ladies and Gentlemen, 1his brings me to the point I wished to ma"e 7hat we are doing here today is clear testimony that PwC has been part and parcel of this 'enyan growth story, together, of course, with other private sector players ) who also have played their part in getting us to where we are today 7e have wor"ed together to build the economy that we have today, by engaging in candid discussion and by listening to each other I am proud, therefore, to see companies li"e PwC investing in their people 1he people of 'enya, in all their resilience and industry, are our greatest asset -ut we must nurture and grow this asset, li"e any other asset In offering opportunities for continuing education, many companies in 'enya are giving the nation the s"illed men and women it needs to achieve the growth ob%ectives we have set for ourselves !urther, offices li"e this are places where talented people want to wor" Ladies and Gentlemen, ,s we continue to build the 'enya of tomorrow, we recognise the contribution of companies li"e PwC Implementation of our 8ision 3464 strategic plan will help the transformation of 'enya into a middle&income country by 3464 -ut, as a Government, we recognise we cannot do it alone given the many demands the national e.che2uer has to contend with 1herefore, what PwC has done will no doubt help us improve the volume and value of economic activity in 'enya 1his indeed is the way to achieve the goals of our 8ision 3464 Ladies and Gentlemen, Now, let me stress that while we have made significant socio&economic achievements, we have yet to fully e.ploit our potential Conse2uently, we still have various challenges to deal with ,t the current rate of economic growth rate, our economy is not generating enough %obs to employ every 'enyan searching for wor"9 and poverty and ine2uality are problems still re2uiring our urgent attention 1hese are the challenges we must overcome to become the country we aspire to be, a country where hunger is a matter of history (y Government firmly intends to con2uer these challenges 7e have set for

ourselves ambitious but achievable targets in "ey priority areas that will unloc" our growth potential !or instance, we are investing in a ma%or energy programme to generate up to 0,444 megawatts of low cost energy to boost manufacturing and other "ey sectors 7e are also constructing a standard gauge railway and improving efficiency at the port of (ombasa, in addition to continued investment in other infrastructure pro%ects, aimed at enhancing 'enyas competitiveness ,t the same time, we are investing in irrigation pro%ects to reduce dependence on rain&fed agriculture and therefore enhance our countrys food security ,bove all, we "now that our development ob%ectives will remain mere aims without sufficient security 1o that end, we are investing heavily in security in order to in particular improve the business environment and ultimately the general welfare of 'enyans Let me reiterate the point I made earlier, that the road to middle&income status is not one that the Government can travel alone 1he private sector will be our companion, as it has been in the past 1hat is why I am pleased to see PwC lighting our path by investing in this world&class facility9 yours is a clear and early sign of the prosperous 'enya that is to come Ladies and Gentlemen, -efore I conclude, let me note that a peaceful nation founded on unity and prosperity is the achievement of people, not institutions +ach one of us has an obligation to build the 'enya of tomorrow9 all our talents must shine in use 1hose of us in Government can strengthen the rule of law and improve enforcement, strengthen governance and represent each other and ourselves fairly 1hese actions will improve trust in the public institutions that we represent9 and which, in turn, we e.pect to survive us and become our legacy /ur youth and the upcoming generation of students must have role models in business and in Government, who demonstrate the virtues of respect, diligence, honesty and fairness 1hese are our obligations to society and to each other (oreover, as we approach the status of a middle&income country, our people will demand more and better products and services from us as a Government and from our companies I loo" forward to stronger partnerships with companies li"e PwC to ensure we achieve our socio&economic transformation agenda I say this because I strongly believe that :1ogether 7e Can (a"e It ; 1o conclude< let me once again commend PwC for investing in this facility, whose symbolic nature and iconic location has completely changed the real estate landscape in this part of our city 7ith these remar"s, it is my pleasure to declare the PwC /ffice -uilding officially

open 1han" =ou and God -less =ou