The place of youth in Kenya's strategic plans

Last week, Kenya hosted a pan-African Conference on Violent Extremism (CVE), which dealt with formulating joint responses to fighting one of the key challenges of our time. One critical question was: what to do with the youth bulge.

By demography, the 'youth bulge' is the reality of our time. On the one hand, large numbers of young people furnished with economic opportunity, and that buy into the Kenyan dream, present immeasurable potential for growth. On the other hand, if not well managed, a large number of idle, frustrated youth pose significant risk for the survival of the State. They can be drawn to ideologies that undermine the legitimacy of the State and can be used to destroy our democratic dispensation.