The National Youth Opportunities towards Advancement (NYOTA), a World Bank funded project is set to benefit over 800,000 youth in the country, Youth Affairs and Creative Economy Principal Secretary (PS) Ismail Maalim Madey has revealed.
According to Maalim, the project mainly targets to address the rising challenge of youth unemployment, and that it will be rolled out jointly with the State Department for Labour and Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs).
Speaking at Jomo Kenyatta International Stadium in Kisumu during the launch of International Youth Week celebrations, the PS noted that the project encourages determination and zeal to achieve goals, regardless of personal connections.
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“The government and the private sector alone cannot absorb all these people. Therefore, we must be creative and take advantage of the youth fund and other government programs to address this challenge,” he said.
The State Department as per Maalim is currently conducting a national talent search to support and nurture creatives.
The search, dubbed ‘Who’s next’, aims to identify Kenya’s next big stars in various categories including music, drama, comedy, performing arts, dance, and content creation, among others; with the PS announcing that auditions will be conducted online through the Talanta Hela website, followed by physical auditions in collaboration with county governments.
“We have made the process simple. If you have talent you can do a short video recording and post it on the portal on Talanta Hela website to be auditioned,” he said.
Speaking during the same occasion, Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Josiah Moriasi said the uptake of the funds has improved.
The fund has so far disbursed Ksh15.4 billion to youths and youth groups across the country, whereas, in Kisumu County it has disbursed Ksh600 million to 16,000 youth.
By Fredrick Odiero
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