The creation of at least 500 new medium-sized firms and 20 multinational companies is part of a five-year master plan unveiled*by the Kenya ICT*Board.*

The National ICT Master plan 2017, is also seeking to put Kenya among the top ICT spots in the world.

"We want Kenya to be among top 10 ICT hubs in the world,” Mr Paul Kukubo, told participants of the Connected Kenya 2012 Summit which ended last week in Mombasa.

He said the plan will see Kenyans access public services, information and knowledge through ICT.

The government’s ambitious*blueprint for ICT*envisions every Kenyan*connected to the internet in the next half-a-decade. The ICT master plan is an initiative of the ministry of Information and Communication.

According to Information and communication permanent secretary, Bitange Ndemo, the plan will see ICT contribute about 25 per cent of the country’s GDP.

“We are looking at having about 500 medium sized companies, the size of Sevenseas Technologies, and 20 multinational companies. We already are on the way of having the first multinational company in Ushahidi, as soon as it can get a way to monetise its services,” said Mr Ndemo.

The government will ensure it runs an effective shared services platform. To deliver this, the sector*will set up a steering committee tasked to transition Kenya into a digital and connected nation through*clusters such as strategic governance, socio economic development, information communication and country positioning.

Other clusters of the master plan include creation of an enabling environment for companies in the sector to thrive, as well as finalising e-government Initiatives.

The plan also aims at building a reliable, high quality and secure information communication infrastructure to protect internet users from cybercrime.

Participants challenged the government*to be involved in*marketing local companies to*fellow governments as it negotiates government to government deals to*support this vision.

“The government is the best salesperson to other governments. It should, therefore, carry some of our local companies in its wings as it negotiates with other governments for deals,” said ICT board chairman Ms Catherine Ngahu.

“ICT must also be made less complex should we want it to succeed,” Ms Ngahu said.

She was speaking at the Connected Kenya Summit 2012 in Mombasa.

The summit is in its fourth year and is the brainchild of the Kenya ICT Board in consultation with industry players and government.

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