Google today opened its second web and mobile conference, GKenya by announcing the launch of Getting Kenya Businesses Online (GKBO), an initiative that aims to bring thousands of small and medium size enterprises online this year. Businesses will have the opportunity to create their own website and develop an online presence, for free.
The GKBO initiative is expected to transform the Kenyan SME landscape, a sector expected to become a key driver for growth according to Vision 2030, by making it quick, easy and free for businesses to register an online presence, at a time when more and more Kenyans are accessing the internet every year.
Dr Bitange Ndemo, PS in the Ministry of Information and Communication said "GKBO is an initiative which will transform the Kenyan SMB landscape and have a real impact on the economy, contributing towards Kenya's Vision 2030. The number of Internet users in Kenya is in excess of 10.2 million (CCK Quarterly Sector Statistics Report), up by 18% from the previous quarter. Yet, many businesses are not yet online because they see it as costly or complicated. At a time when being online is an essential part of economic growth, having a website is as important as having a telephone. Google is giving SMBs a head start by making it quick and easy to have an online presence."

Olga Arara-Kimani, Google Kenya Country Manager added, "Today's launch of Getting Kenyan Businesses Online is hugely exciting for Google Kenya. We believe that the power of the internet will help small businesses in Kenya to thrive, by bringing more local information online, and making that information more accessible and useful to the public. Whether you sell shoes, electronics, cars, transport services or even mama mbogas, the GKBO tools will help you reach new customers.

Grace Murugi Wanjama, the owner of a small cake business attending the conference said "Our business has really grown thanks to the internet – I am able to reach many more people through my website. But beyond that, having a well managed online presence has helped my business engage with customers 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Even when I am unavailable or asleep my website keeps on working for me."

The GKBO announcement was followed by a moderated panel discussion that discussed the importance of the internet in growing businesses. Among participants in the panel were Bob Collymore, CEO Safaricom; Dr. James Mwangi, CEO Equity Bank; Dr. Bitange Ndemo, Information and Communications Permanent Secretary; Patrick Obath, Chair - Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA), Mugo Kibati - Director General, Vision 2030 and David Wambua, Ag. CEO Kenya Network Information Center (KENIC).

The GKenya conference, themed 'The next iteration of digital', has attracted 1,000 business people, engineers, product managers, entrepreneurs and web developers to receive training on Google's products and online business skills that will help them grow their businesses. The conference is taking place between September 12th and September 13th 2011 at the Westgate Mall Cinemas, Nairobi. GKenya demonstrates Google's continued commitment to driving the web forward in Africa, and highlighting the entrepreneurial opportunities it brings.

This is the second conference that Google is hosting in Kenya in a series of interactive forums and tech days that Google has been holding across Africa each year, to promote innovation and business and boost economies in the region.

The  service is accesible for free by visiting http://www.kbo.co.ke . Thre businesses will however have their domains as a prefix to kbo.co.ke , such as http://mamamboga.kbo.co.ke