Daikin Industries is banking on a growing middle class in pursuit of comfort and convenience to drive uptake of air conditioning products in Kenya.
The firm’s CEO Kanwal Jeet Jawa says the changing lifestyle coupled with increased focus on energy conservation as well as investments in the affordable housing agenda are likely to see demand for air conditioning products in Kenya drastically increase in coming years.
The government is targeting to have half a million housing units constructed under the affordable housing agenda by the year 2022.
This coupled with investments by other developers is expected to drive up demand for products such as air conditioners, riding on higher temperatures as a result of climate change.
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According to Jawa unlike in the past when hotels and some commercial buildings were the main customers for air conditioning products, there have been tremendous growth in the sale of such products for use in residential homes as the Kenyan middle class seek to extend the facilities, they enjoy at their work place to their homes.
Jawa says Daikin’s choice of Kenya as a gateway into East and Central Africa is informed by a growing middle class, rapid and sustained economic growth in recent years as well as a huge population of the spending class.
The firm says demand for products would inform the decision about whether to set up a manufacturing plant in Kenya.
