Youth jobs plan set for major boost

• Kenya has asked the World Bank to help run the programme

The future of the Kazi Kwa Vijana programme is likely to be secured once Kenya’s bid to rope in the World Bank yields results.

The government has written to the Bretton Woods institution proposing how the programme can be assisted.

Youths engaged in various projects across the country shall receive formal training on how to go about their businesses, while those already trained shall be offered internships.

The private sector has also been roped in, and will be expected to open doors of opportunities, where the youths can exploit skills acquired after the training.

According to a report from the office of the Prime Minister, Kazi Kwa Vijana (KKV) is set for a major boost – both financially and in terms of skills improvement – if the WB gives a nod to the proposals.

Challenge

The sustainability of the programme, now entering its second year, and community participation shall be greatly increased.

The good news come at a time when KKV is facing the challenge of lack of efficiency.

In its first year, KKV has been associated with protest marches by youths in various parts of the country over pay delays.

The report says the government has developed environmental impact assessments to ensure that possible risks are prevented, minimised or compensated as required by the bank.

Says the report: “The World Bank has global experience in best practice operational features of public works programmes and will, together with the International Labour Organisation (ILO), provide important technical skills to improve the efficiency of the KKV.”

The government has disclosed that in the KKV programme priority will be given to projects that can be implemented rapidly.

They include road maintenance, small-scale water supply and sanitation, water harvesting and waste collection.

“The implementation of the respective projects is not expected to have adverse environmental impacts, given the relatively simple and mostly manual nature of the work,” says the report, which has been posted on the web site of the Prime Minister’s office.

The proposals will enhance the existing projects under the KKV programme which were launched in April last year by President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

The projects seek to create some 350,000 menial jobs in a bid to reduce the growing unemployment rate among the youth.

When it started, Sh3.4 billion was allocated to run the projects nationally, but the government’s contribution to the programme has been increase to Sh6.6 billion in the current financial year.

The report notes that preliminary interviews conducted by the WB in the countryside indicate that “youths approve the projects, appreciate the income, and wish it to continue”.

Training

The bank notes that training the youth will “systematically improve implementation of programmes, optimise labour, and enhance performance of the project in the community”.

But the deal may even get sweeter with a tripartite partnership of the youths, training providers and the private sector on the way.

“This will increase youth’s employability by providing training and opportunities for internships within the private sector for a certain period of time.”

A number of organisations such as the Youth Enterprise Development Fund, and the Kenya National Federation of Jua Kali Associations shall be involved.