Local companies have been pushing the government through the Kenya ICT Board to develop policies that encourage public and private institutions to engage local companies, especially in contracts that do not require intense capital and a complex skills set -- areas that many small and medium companies fail in.

However, more and more universities are offering tech courses, and a culture of innovation is being fostered by a growing number of co-working spaces and incubation hubs, analysts point out. Two years ago, iHub in Nairobi was set up as the first innovation hub in East Africa, but the number has rapidly grown.

"The culture of indigenous innovation has been steadily growing; successful companies such as Wananchi, AccessKenya, KDN, Seven Seas and to a certain extent Safaricom are all homegrown organizations with majority Kenyan ownership and staffing," Africa Analysis' Lee said. "These companies have pushed the barriers of technology to meet the needs of the population and spawned innovations such as Ushahidi, M-Pesa and the like that have revolutionized their particular spheres of operation."

Ushahidi is a nonprofit software company, while M-Pesa is Safaricom's mobile money service.

While much of the growth in IT may seem to involve bigger companies in business for at least five years, smaller companies that have grown out of co-working spaces or have been started by former employees of the local big companies have also found a way to develop in the regional market.