Computing solutions provider Raspberry Pi has revealed that it will be manufacturing some of its electronics in Kenya. This development will be implemented following the firm’s partnership with local manufacturer Gearbox Europlacer, which will then see the production of some of Raspberry Pi’s flagship hardware devices.
Since its inception, Raspberry Pi has been instrumental in the resurgence of teaching basic computer science skills across the world through its popular Raspberry Pi single-board computers. These devices have sold over 50 million devices in the last 10 years.
Gearbox Europlacer, on the other hand, is an electronics manufacturing services provider (EMS). It is based in Nairobi. Its operations started just in 2021 to accelerate the development of best-fit intelligent African solutions that solve African problems, serving young innovators to mature companies in a variety of positive growth sectors such as Agritech, climate change, electric mobility, and smart metering solutions among others.
Gearbox Europlacer is a joint venture between a Kenyan-owned maker/product realization space called organization Gearbox which has been instrumental in supporting local hardware innovations since 2014, and Europlacer, a British-owned Surface mount technology (SMT) equipment manufacturer fully owned by a Christian charity Parable Trust and Wellers Impact, UK based impact investment firm with extensive experience in Africa.
Raspberry Pi is working with local partners to include computing in the local STEM curriculum. The partnership with Gearbox Europlacer will increase access to these computing solutions that were previously difficult to procure.
The products to be manufactured at Gearbox Europlacer beginning mid-November 2022 will bear a ‘Made in Kenya’ mark and will be available to its customers both in Kenya and the East and Central Africa region.
