KCB Foundation and the German Development Cooperation have today distributed 476 trade-specific building and construction toolkits to youth in the construction sector, to the tune of KES 19 million, following their successful technical training in accredited technical institutions across the country.
This is in line with the partnership between the two organizations to upskill and increase the employability and income generation of 3,500 Kenyan youth in the construction sector.
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The programme is expected to fill the gap that exists between the skills that job-seeking youth possess and the demand-driven technical skills. The initiative will also give the much-needed push to the underprivileged youth to acquire training and build a future.
Commencing 2021, eligible youth from the cohort will also receive capital, with favourable terms to set up their respective business enterprises under KCB Foundation’s Business Development Services that will guide them until the enterprises reach stability.
Speaking at the event, KCB Director Corporate Esther Waititu noted that KCB is driven by a shared value that champions businesses to also play a role in solving societal challenges, which is the anchor of KCB Foundation programmes.
“We believe that we can only progress if the communities that have given us a license to operate also progress. This is why we focus on enterprise development as a job creation channel for the youth and provide them with the necessary support to advance. Including technical skills development, business toolkit provision and capital to set up their enterprises.”
She added.
The beneficiaries were drawn from various technical and vocational education and training (TVET) institutions in Nairobi and have received training in the sub-sectors of electrical, plumbing, welding, masonry, and carpentry, through KCB’s 2Jiajiri programme. The 2Jiajiri programme’s mandate is to formalize the informal job sector through training and enterprise development.
A total of 2,094 youth have successfully been trained in technical construction skills, drawn from 11 counties including Nairobi, Nakuru, Mombasa, Kilifi, Meru, Kirinyaga, Homabay, Embu, Busia, Kakamega and Siaya.
The programme targets a total of 60% male and 40% female, with a bias towards unskilled individuals previously working in the construction sector.
The project, in partnership with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) was commissioned in 2021 and is set to be completed in 2023.
Previously, the 2jiajiri programme, in partnership with E4D programme, trained a total of 4,000 youth across seven counties from 2017-2019 in the subsectors of construction and agriculture. Over 580 youth from the construction cohort received toolkits from Bosch under the partnership.