Long-distance call
An urbanite who grew up in Nairobi, Iris Yu has always had immense respect for Kenyan farmers who subsist on what they grow. 'There is a strong tradition of land and pastoral culture here,' the soft-spoken Yu says in an accent that is part South African, part British and part American.
The 56-year-old entrepreneur is using that tradition as a base from which to produce green energy. 'I've just started a business with a Hong Kong partner to grow the jatropha plant. I'm looking into acquiring farmland [in Kenya] for the first time in my life.'
Jatropha curcas - a species of wild shrub from Central America - was cited by Goldman Sachs as 'one of the best candidates for biodiesel production', according to The Wall Street Journal. Its seeds contain 30 per cent oil, which can be processed into a high-quality biodiesel fuel to power diesel engines.
Yu is not new to business, having spent more than 30 years helping to run her family's group of restaurants. Originally from Guangdong province, her parents moved to South Africa, where Yu was born. Then, when she was eight, the family moved to Kenya, where her father opened Mombasa's first Chinese restaurant, in 1960. After he died, Yu's mother ran the restaurant, with her six children pitching in. Yu's uncle and his family later journeyed to Africa to join the business and Yu went to Britain to take a degree in business administration. She met her husband - a Hongkonger who was visiting relatives in Nairobi - during a break from university. 'After I married I started visiting Hong Kong more often, because of my husband's ties.'
Yu tried living in the United States and Hong Kong - she ran a cha chaan teng (teashop) in Tseung Kwan O for two years - but returned to Nairobi about a decade ago to oversee the family's restaurant group, which she still does.
'Nairobi is not that big,' says Yu, 'but it's quite a cosmopolitan city. Being an ex-British colony, it's a bit like Hong Kong. Hong Kong people seem afraid to come to Kenya. I've lived here nearly all my life and I've always felt at home. The best thing to do with out-of-town guests is to take them on safari - I took my family over the winter holidays, it was great.'
Now widowed, she racks up the air miles visiting her far-flung adult children, one of whom, Jessica (pictured with Yu), is pursuing a medical degree in Sydney. Partly because all five of her children have left Kenya, Yu sees herself retiring in either Malaysia, where her eldest daughter lives, or the Philippines, where English, her first language, is widely spoken. But for now, her energies are focused on her business, Sinafro East Africa, and building investor interest in alternative energy.
'The project is about developing clean energy but I'm hoping it will help the local community; there is a deficit of exports from Kenya and the country is at the top of the world poverty list. Once we cultivate the plant on a commercial level, the market will be worldwide.'
