Let’s revisit Youth Empowerment Marshall Plan to create jobs for youth

By Michael Waikenda

Kenya: Kenya is among the countries hardest hit by unemployment, with 70 per cent of the unemployed being young people.

Our challenge as a nation is how to take advantage of the rising numbers of young unemployed people. If we can put them to work, this country would experience unprecedented growth. We must reduce the length of the period between leaving school and obtaining the first job.

We need to revisit the Youth Employment ‘Marshall Plan’ that was developed by the Ministry of Youth Affairs in 2008, with a view to reenergizing it, and ensuring none of its provisions has been overtaken by events.

Among the proposals in the plan is the use of labour-intensive public works, promote vocational, technical and entrepreneurship training and to provide business finance and business support to youth-led enterprises. Others include providing a framework for exporting manpower and creating employment by promoting and popularising ICT as a medium of learning, trade, management and youth development.

The use of labour-intensive public works will absorb unskilled youth whose mainstay is manual labour. Our vocational training programme must give more say to industry players to ensure what is taught corresponds with available employment opportunities, and that graduates of the programme are able to fit into the world outside school.

Youth fund

Youth entrepreneurship will create employment, both for the person who owns the enterprise and those employed. It will also provide valuable products and services for the country and promote innovation and development.  Kenya is already providing financing and business support to youth through the Youth Enterprise Development Fund. The Government has in fact injected some Sh6 billion into the fund. The Fund has great potential to transform the way young people view their chances in the economy.

Lack of data and understanding on the challenges young people face, especially in the informal sector hampers efficient service delivery to them. There is no research-based evidence on what really works and therefore, programmes stand the risk of being poorly designed and funded. We must invest in research in this area so that decisions are made on the basis of empirical evidence. The target group for programmes should be well defined and services should respond to the needs, capacities and opportunities facing young men and women.

Kenya can create employment not tied to economic growth by coming up with a framework that will accelerate the absorption of its citizens in foreign labour markets.

Some may argue this is brain drain, but is not if it is absorbing manpower that is not locally engaged.

Thousands of jobless young Kenyans will have opportunity to engage in gainful employment through this programme and therefore, ease social tensions.

The writer is TNA Director of Communications.

Twitter @MachelWaikenda