Sh6bn youth funds to be released in July

The Youth Enterprise Development Fund will start disbursing the Sh6 billion budgetary allocation to groups across the country next month.

The money will be released directly to 250,000 youth groups to engage in small scale businesses, according to chairman Gor Semelang’o.

The amount to be loaned to the groups would go up from Sh50,000 to Sh400,000 for the youths to have better capital for small micro enterprises, said Mr Semelang’o said Thursday.

“We plan to start disbursing the Sh6 billion which the national government allocated for youth empowerment from next month,” he said at Bandari College in Mombasa.

Mr Semelang’o asked the youth to form groups of between seven and 12 members for them to be considered for loans.

The fund, he stated, would open offices in all 290 constituencies for easy disbursements.

The chairman said the fund would soon recruit 580 enterprise development officers to coordinate youth activities.

The officers will train the youths on entrepreneurship and the management of funds.

Some 210 motorcycles would be distributed to the officers for logistical support, said Mr Semelang’o, noting that front offices would be established in all constituency for deposit-taking.

Labour export cartels

He at the same time disclosed that the fund would next month launch a secretariat in Nairobi to deal with labour export to dismantle cartels that recruit Kenyan youth to work abroad.

The cartels have been fleecing youth looking for greener pastures abroad by charging exorbitant fees.

“We will open a secretariat in Nairobi next month to handle labour export matters in a bid to curb exploitation of our youth by cartels,” the chairman added.