Unless you know something I don't Robert, there is no connection between Nokia and Virtual City that extends to their influencing it's location.

As for tax incentives for foreign software this is not necessarily a bad thing. There is some software that local firms need that local software companies cannot or will not produce. This software being cheaper is a good thing holistically.

The greater issue then is what can be done to stimulate the local software industry? Personally my problem is not Microsoft and Oracle software being cheaper. This is in fact a kick in the pants to competitors and an opportunity for integrators. My problem is we are not creating a culture and environment for local Micrososfts and Oracles to develop and thrive.

I'm pretty sure the success of ESET (Slovakia), Bitdefender (Romania), AVG (Czech Republic), Avast (Czech Republic) is not due to tax holidays. Let us treat diseases, not symptoms.

On Tuesday, August 21, 2012, robert yawe wrote:

Hi All,

Yet another nail in the Konza coffin with the imminent departure of Craft Silicon to Singapore as a result of the finance bill which gave tax incentives to imported software and no corresponding incentives for local developers.

http://www.nation.co.ke/Tech/ICT+firms+shun+Kenya/-/1017288/1483212/-/1sy894/-/index.html

At this rate Nokia will relocate Virtual City to Denmark or Singapore if we continue to allow our laws to favour foreign firms at the expense of developing local capacity. This development pours cold water on the recent establishment of a research lab by IBM as those who acquire the skills will not be able to be competitive locally.

More disappointing is a statement by Huawei Kenya representative, Wind Li, that such incentives to foreign software developers will challenge locals to be more creative yet we all know that China shutdown it borders to foreign participation for over 50 years which resulted in their current positive growth.

He added insult to injury by saying that removal of trade barriers is always good for a country's business development, this statement sounds a lot like what the western governments kept preaching to us during the height of the structural adjustment program.

Regards

PS. China is now making it clear that they are here as the 3rd wave of colonizers of Africa.

Robert Yawe
KAY System Technologies Ltd
Phoenix House, 6th Floor
P O Box 55806 Nairobi, 00200
Kenya

Tel: +254722511225, +254202010696