NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 17 – EmpServe Kenya and the Association of Countrywide Innovation Hubs (ACIH) have launched the South Eastern & Metropolitan Innovation Week 2026 (SEM-IW 2026) to promote technology, green solutions and creative industries.

The innovation week will run through November, culminating in a regional summit scheduled for November 16–20 across Nairobi, Kajiado, Machakos, Makueni and Kitui counties.

The programme was launched at Riara University and will bring together innovators, policymakers, universities, development partners and businesses from the five counties.

Activities will include boot camps, an online innovation challenge and local ecosystem mobilisation ahead of the summit.

The programme will focus on e-commerce and digital trade, climate-smart agriculture, apiculture, renewable energy and green technology, eco-tourism and cultural heritage, fodder and dairy, and digital arts and the creative economy.

EmpServe Kenya Executive Director Martin Irungu said the programme will give innovators, particularly young people in the Nairobi Metropolitan area, an opportunity to showcase their ideas and attract potential investors.

“What we are doing is that we are mapping out the problems that are affecting the communities that we are working with, then working with young innovators from TVETs, universities among others, then bring out the synergy and support the ideas,” Irungu said.

Anthony Sang, Head of Construction Operations Management at Konza Technopolis Development Authority, said the programme aligns with the government’s Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA).

Sang said the Authority will support grassroots innovations to develop them into practical solutions for communities.