Home News SAIDC agency promoted SlovakAid and strengthened partnerships in East Africa
From 8 to 12 June 2026, Jakub Šimek, Project and Financial Coordinator at the Slovak Agency for International Development Cooperation (SAIDC), took part in an official mission to Kenya and Tanzania as a member of the Slovak delegation led by Juraj Blanár, Minister of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic, and the accompanying business mission organised by the Slovak Investment and Trade Development Agency (SARIO). The mission brought together 35 Slovak companies, making it the largest Slovak business delegation to visit Sub-Saharan Africa to date.
The mission aimed to advance Slovakia's development and economic diplomacy, strengthen partnerships in East Africa, and present opportunities for Slovak companies and institutions in the region.
As part of the programme in Nairobi, the Kenya–Slovakia Business and Development Forum brought together representatives of the public sector, businesses and development organisations from both countries. Representing SAIDC, Zuzana Miščiková, Project Activities Coordinator for the EU Delegation-funded IYBA-SEED initiative in South Africa and Kenya, and Jakub Šimek presented the SlovakAid instruments, opportunities to link development cooperation with the private sector, and the potential offered by the Global Gateway initiative for partners across Africa.
During her presentation, Zuzana Miščiková shared experiences from the implementation of the IYBA-SEED initiative, which SlovakAid has been implementing together with its partners in Kenya and South Africa since 2024. She highlighted support for young entrepreneurs as well as efforts to strengthen Kenya's start-up ecosystem.
The panel discussion also featured SlovakAid partners. Veronika Macsai from the Integra Foundation presented how, with SlovakAid support, the organisation is helping build sustainable supply chains in Africa and assisting farmers in obtaining Fairtrade certification. She noted that products such as macadamia nuts now represent a significant share of their exports to Slovakia.
Bonface Juma of Manyur Technologies introduced the company's cooperation with AgeVolt Slovakia, supported through SlovakAid, which enabled the launch of electric vehicle charging station manufacturing in Kenya.
The programme also included an afternoon expert panel organised jointly with UNDP Kenya, providing a platform for networking and identifying opportunities for future cooperation in digital transformation, artificial intelligence, climate-resilient agriculture, renewable energy, and innovation support for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Discussions throughout the forum confirmed that Africa is among the world's most dynamic and innovative regions.
It is home to globally recognised innovations such as M-Pesa, the mobile banking platform that has enabled millions of people to access financial services via mobile phones since 2007, well before similar solutions became widespread in Europe. Innovation is also transforming healthcare. Since 2019, Rwanda has operated a drone-based delivery system transporting blood, medicines and medical supplies to remote communities.
These examples demonstrate that innovation is no longer driven solely by the Global North. Increasingly, Africa is becoming a source of solutions with global relevance. For Slovak companies, universities and development partners, the continent therefore represents not only a development priority but also an important space for new partnerships, innovation and investment opportunities.
On 10 June, Jakub Šimek and the delegation visited several SlovakAid-supported initiatives in Kenya. The programme included a meeting at the Kenya School of Government, featuring an evaluation of the Cybergame 2026 event, as well as visits to the RefuSHE project and St. Philip Neri Primary and Junior Secondary School in Joska.
The visits provided an opportunity to observe the tangible results of Slovak development cooperation in the areas of education, support for vulnerable groups and community development. They also enabled discussions with implementing partners on opportunities to further expand SlovakAid activities in the country.
The second stop of the mission was Tanzania, where, on 11 June, the delegation participated in the Tanzania–Slovakia Business Forum in Dar es Salaam. The event was held to mark the opening of the first-ever Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Tanzania, underscoring the growing interest of both countries in strengthening trade, investment and development cooperation.
The mission confirmed the importance of linking development cooperation, economic diplomacy and the private sector in building long-term partnerships in East Africa. It also contributed to raising the visibility of SlovakAid, establishing new partnerships and creating further opportunities for cooperation across the region.