- Government urges a fresh approach to funding youth development programmes
- Youth initiatives highlighted as potential drivers of economic growth
- Skills, entrepreneurship and employment remain key areas for young people
Principal Secretary for Youth Affairs and Creative Economy Fikirini Jacobs has called for a shift in how government and development partners view expenditure on youth programmes, saying investments in young people can generate significant economic returns.
Fikirini made the remarks while presenting the youth development programmes being implemented across government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) during the 15th Development Partnership Forum (DPF).
The forum was convened by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki and co-chaired by Germany’s Ambassador Sebastian Growth and UN representative Dr Garry Conille.
Fikirini cited a joint report by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and World Bank titled “Impact of Active Labour Market Programmes on Youth”, which highlights the economic benefits of programmes designed to improve young people’s access to employment, skills and income-generating opportunities.
Against this backdrop, Fikirini said youth interventions should not be viewed merely as social expenditure but as economic investments capable of generating significant returns.
“For our country where the median age of the population is 20 years, the returns on investment in youth-related programmes is extremely huge,” Fikirini said.
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He pointed to the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) programme as one of the initiatives demonstrating the potential of investing in young people.
Fikirini also highlighted the government’s focus on Youth Empowerment Centres, skills development, entrepreneurship, digital and creative economies, the blue economy, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and trade.
He said the initiatives under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) place young people at the centre of individual and collective economic growth.
The PS said Kenya’s youthful population presents a major opportunity for the country to accelerate economic development by equipping young people with relevant skills, supporting entrepreneurship and expanding access to employment and markets.
He called for continued collaboration between government agencies and development partners in strengthening programmes that empower young people to become productive participants in the economy.
By Jeff Kirui
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