World Bank recruits 3,360 youth applicants in empowerment programme

KISUMU, KENYA: The World Bank has recruited 3,360 youth from Nairobi, Nakuru, Kisumu, Mombasa and Kwale who applied for training and financing to start their own businesses.

The global bank had invited applications from the interested jobless youth to apply for the youth empowerment program early this month.

The applications closed on January 10th with 93,577 youth tendering in their requests for the World Bank business financing and training opportunity.

But not all made it to the final lists. In Nairobi, 30,360 youth were selected, followed by Nakuru's 26,140 youth, Kisumu 18,454, Mombasa 11,999 and Kwale 6,624.

The exercise was done through a random computer selection process and will see the selected youth report for training starting next month.

The project is being undertaken by the Kenya Youth Employment and Opportunities (KYEOP) and Nairobi, Kisumu, Mombasa, Nakuru and Kwale were targeted in phase one.

According to KYEOP National Coordinator Olivia Ouko, the training will be done in phases and so not all the applicants picked will be trained at the same time.

''We have done clustering and we shall train those selected in shifts while others will be put on the waiting lists to allow us finish with first lot and pick new lot,'' she said

Ouko disclosed part of the recruited youth will immediately be financed to start their own business after demonstratING capacity to do so.

But there are those who will have to be trained on how to start business, on book keeping and accounting, banking, saving, borrowing or lending from banks.

''We want to inspire them to act positively and build on their innovation and diverse skills, ‘said Kisumu Youth Director Timothy Kajwang who lauded the project as good.

World Bank's representative Kie Riedel told the Standard in an interview that the project is aimed at helping the government to empower youth and boost our economic growth.

''I am so pleased thousands of jobless youth were able to log into KYEOP webportal and to apply for the opening. That is good. We will test run this for five years,'' Riedel said

Each of the beneficiary youth will be given a start up capital of Sh40,000. Riedel revealed that some of the youth will be helped to get paid internship jobs in select firms.

The KYEOP project in the long run targets to benefit more than 280,000 within the next five years.