Nairobi, March 22 -- In the 1970s, Kenya nearly became an "economic tiger" supported by a simple but effective strategy that focused on increased production and exports, while reducing imports of what could be produced locally.

The target sectors were agriculture and industrialisation, which were so well synchronised to produce value-added goods for the Kenyan market and exports, as jobs were created and assured. The result was a strong balance of payment that easily funded development projects.

Come the 1990s, Kenya failed to resist pressure from the IMF to hastily liberalise our economy which in part entailed opening gates to imports. Today industrial areas in our cities and towns are ghosts of former selves with wasted investments an...