Startup incubators in Kenya have become the best sources of business knowledge and resources. Through networking, entrepreneurs can develop new business ideas. Entrepreneurs who have gone through a business incubator can maneuver through the business challenges. You too, who is starting can get invaluable knowledge from Kenyan incubators. Let’s look at best incubators in Kenya.
Top Business Incubators in Kenya (Incubation Hubs in Kenya)
iBiz Africa
iBiz Africa is one of incubation centres in Kenya for entrepreneurship and Strathmore University hosts it. It provides space, incubation, seed funding, business coaching and mentorship to youths who want to get into the business. The incubation center is playing a critical role in developing ICT solutions for businesses. Through it, you can develop business ideas and also pitch your ideas.
Villgro
Villgro is an incubation center that supports startups to grow. It mainly focuses on the health sector in the East African region. The incubator has impacted greatly on global health and helped many successful startups. Among the notable startups that have gone through the incubator include Ilara, Maisha Meds and Turaco.
iHub
Erik Hersmann started iHub in 2010. It was later acquired by a Nigerian innovation firm, CcHub in 2019. It is the leading incubator in Nairobi. The incubator focuses on tech companies and investors. If you are a developer, software programmer or designer, this is the place for you. It has helped successful businesses to grow, most of which are African tech startups. Some of those startups include Majik Water and M-Shule.
mLab East Africa
mLab East Africa aims at nurturing sustainable enterprises. It trains and educates entrepreneurs in mobile technology and especially those that want to develop mobile applications. They provide learning and networking spaces for entrepreneurs to share ideas.
Also Read: Top Lessons from Top African Entrepreneurs
NaiLab
NaiLab was started in 2011 by Sam Gichuru. It is mainly focused on tech entrepreneurs. It provides acceleration and training to potential entrepreneurs willing to venture into technology startups. The incubator has helped over 50 companies to grow and become profitable. It provides a place where entrepreneurs can meet and exchange ideas.
Chandaria Business Innovation and Incubation Center
The Chandaria business Innovation center is located at Kenyatta University. It was started by the Chandaria Foundation in collaboration with the Youth Enterprise Development. It provides entrepreneurial training and academic research to students for six months. 70% of its members are Kenyatta University students, while 30% are non-students. They offer one-year entrepreneurial training. Among the successful startups that have gone through the incubation center are FlexPay and Ecodudu.
Afrilab
Afrilab is an incubator center collaborating with the University of Nairobi. It was started in 2011 and has been supporting technology hubs in Africa. It offers training, mentorship, financing, networking and other opportunities to entrepreneurs in Africa to potential entrepreneurs. It provides an innovation space for startups that wish to design new products.
LakeHub
LakeHub is and tech business incubation center. It is an open community-based incubation center and is open to anyone. It offers both physical and virtual training to entrepreneurs. There are no membership fees and once you become a member, you get a desk and monthly newsletters. This is a good place to interact with other entrepreneurs, share experience and knowledge.
Also Read: Free Mentorship Opportunities for African Entreprenuers
MEST
Meltwater Entrepreneurial School of Technology is a Pan-African incubation center with its presence in African countries like Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya. It began in Accra, Ghana, in 2018. It provides training, seed funding and networking opportunities to entrepreneurs.
The Hub East Africa
The Hub East Africa is supporting SMEs to start and increase their enterprises. It provides a six-month programme known as hubcubation. This programme provides training, coaching, strategic planning and mentorship to businesses between one and three years old. Some of the successful startups that have passed through the programme include Cloud9, RideSafe and Lapid Leaders Africa.
Mara Launchpad Incubation Center
The Mara Launchpad Incubation Center offers mentorship, seed funding, training and incubation space for social enterprises. The Mara Foundation started it. It is active in three East African countries, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania.
C4DLab
C4DLab is a research and development incubation center. It was started in 2013 and it has been collaborating with the University of Nairobi. It hosts the Nairobi Innovation week that brings together innovators to showcase their innovative products.
Final Thoughts on Business Incubators in Kenya
Business incubators have played a key role in the development and growth of startups in Kenya. They provide entrepreneurs with knowledge, resources, and networking opportunities. It is no wonder that Kenyan startup ecosystem is growing every year. In 2019, Kenyan startups raised over Ksh 40 billion.
