Keninvest – Kenyan Investment Authority recently spotlighted Kenya’s growing leather industry as a major investment opportunity. The sector is expected to expand from $80 million in 2022 to around $850 million by 2040, offering opportunities across tanneries, leather goods, and footwear.
Kenya has over 80 million heads of livestock, making it the 11th largest herd globally. This provides a sustainable supply of high-quality hides and skins.
The leather sector already supports around 17,000 direct jobs and includes over 10 operating tanneries and 20 leather goods manufacturers.
Cost competitiveness is another advantage. Kenya offers lower production costs for both finished leather and men’s leather shoes compared to countries like Vietnam and Brazil.
The Kenanie Leather Industrial Park (KLIP), just 50 km from Nairobi, is central to Kenya’s leather growth. Spanning 500 acres, it hosts tanneries, leather goods manufacturers, and a state of the art effluent treatment plant.
Investors enjoy ready to go facilities, stable power, clean water, roads, warehousing and a 10-year corporate tax holiday.
Government support strengthens the sector further. Kenya is boosting high quality hide supply, investing in infrastructure, supporting skills training, ensuring compliance with EU Deforestation Regulation and Leather Working Group standards and negotiating global trade deals.
Success stories like Alpharama, East Africa’s largest tannery exporting to Europe, China, and Uganda, Reddamac producing 4,000 pairs of shoes daily, Sandstorm with its premium handmade bags, and Adelphi collaborating with Maasai women collectives show the industry’s potential.
Kenya’s leather industry offers investors a combination of resources, market access, cost advantages and supportive infrastructure, making it a prime destination for growth.
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