207 youth get training on e-waste handling

Graduates of the PowerUp programme in Nairobi County. [James Wanzala, Standard] 

Two hundred and seven youth graduated on Friday in Nakuru County with skills to manage electronic waste and turn it into businesses. 

The graduation, which had an 82 per cent completion rate, was part of the PowerUp programme, hosted by consortium partners Bopinc and Light for the World Kenya and funded by the IKEA Foundation. 

The programme is building momentum across various counties, thus providing technical training on repair of electronics, business acumen and inclusion. 

The cohort has also shown a particular interest in the e-waste café model, which has generated positive traction through its hands-on practical training approach. 

The trainings bring together youth, women and persons living with disabilities (PWDs) to acquire skills on electronics repair, refurbishment, reuse and management of electronic waste. 

The Nakuru graduation ceremony comes a few months after two cohorts of 498 and 245 in Nairobi, towards the end of last year, graduated for the first and second cohorts, respectively. 

This marked the start of training sessions for the third cohort under the project, with a focus on Nakuru, followed by Kisumu, Meru, Embu, Eldoret and Mombasa counties. 

The programme is aimed at equipping youth to transform one of Kenya’s fastest-growing environmental challenges into viable businesses, green jobs and local economic opportunities. 

“What we are seeing here is young people proving that environmental responsibility and business success can go hand in hand,” said Ebenezer Amadi, senior programme manager at Bopinc. 

Amadi emphasised the need for collaboration to tackle the challenge of e-waste. “No single actor can build a circular economy alone. This collaboration shows what is possible when public, private, and development partners work together around a shared vision,” he said.