Youth Unemployment in Kenya a Ticking Time Bomb
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Youth Unemployment in Kenya A Ticking Time Bomb Edited by • Helmut Danner • Monica Kerretts-Makau • Johannes Michael Nebe Published by Longhorn Publishers Ltd Funzi Road, Industrial Area P. O. Box 18033 – 00500 Nairobi, Kenya Longhorn Publishers (U) Ltd Kanjokya Street, Plot 74, Kamwokya P. O. Box 24745 Kampala, Uganda Longhorn Publishers (T) Ltd New Bagamoyo/Garden Road Mikocheni B, Plot No. MKC/MCB/81 P. O. Box 1237 Dar es Salaam, Tanzania © Helmut Danner, Monica Kerretts-Makau, Johannes Michael Nebe (eds.) All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the Publisher. This edition has been generously supported by First published 2016 Cover design by Moses Otieno ISBN 978 9966 314 21 5 Printed by Table of Contents Preface .......................................................................................................... v I. The Research Project ............................................................................... 1 Johannes Michael Nebe, John Wesonga Mang’eni ........................... 1 The Youth Question – Creativity as a Driving Force for Development ....................................................................................... 1 II. Life Skills ................................................................................................... 12 Judy Chege: ....................................................................................... 12 Back to Basics – Life Skills and Work Ethics among Kenyan Youth ...................................................................................... 12 III. Agriculture as an Opportunity ............................................................. 24 Mwima George Echessa: Agri-business – The Experience of the Anglican Development Services in Western Kenya ................................................................24 Diana Lee-Smith: Kenyan Urban Youth Getting Involved in Agriculture ...................35 IV. Education ................................................................................................. 42 Monica Kerretts-Makau: An Education for Entrepreneurship? ................................................42 Jephthah Gathaka: Education for Life ................................................................................ 64 Entela Kallamata: Unemployed Young People in the European Union ......................75 Helmut Danner: The Dual Vocational Education and Training in Germany...........87 V. Programmes ............................................................................................ 102 Mutinta Munyati: Youth Action for Urban Future .......................................................102 David Mshila: Why Programmes Targeting Youth Employment are iii not Effective .......................................................................................114 Raphael Obonyo: Policy Interventions to Tackle Youth Unemployment .................130 VI. The Informal Sector ............................................................................. 138 George Njoroge: Trapped in the Informal Economy – Is there any Hope for the Youth? ...............................................................................................138 Olang Sana: Youth Initiatives in Response to the Unemployment in the Nairobi Slums ...........................................................................149 Richard N. Muteti: Opportunities and Challenges for the Youth in the Jua Kali Sector ............................................................................. 167 VII. Specific Groups in the Labour Market ............................................. 171 Cathychristine Keya, Brenda Mbaja Lubang’a: Youth Unemployment – The Plight of Female Youths ..............171 Isaac M. Mwaura: Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Employment ..............181 Gabriel Dinda: Uncertain Future – The Headache of Kenyan Students ...........187 VIII. Special Issues ..................................................................................... 194 Howard Akimala: Reproductive Health and Unemployment – the Challenge for the Youth ‘Bulge’ .......................................................................194 Kilemi Mwiria: Kenya should Exploit Worldwide Demand for Highly-Skilled Labour.....................................................................201 Acknowledgements ...................................................................................209 Author profiles ...........................................................................................210 iv Preface The pressures of urbanisation cannot be explained better than by the challenges faced by young people struggling to find meaningful employment. The sight of hand-cart-pulling young men is common in most cities and is evidence of the immense ef forts young people put to make ends meet. Employment has become elusive and ventures such as these have offered an opportunity for self-employment. Many articles and pieces of writings have addressed this predicament mostly facing the young people. The title picture of this book highlights the plight of a group of youths some who may even be university graduates but they are jobless. Every day, these youths see the rich driving their big air- conditioned cars. And the rich drivers probably perceive the youths and their hand-carts as a hindrance to the smooth flow of traffic. The world seems closed for young people in Kenya. Kenya’s population is predominantly young and a significant number of youths are trained but cannot access employment. They are found in all facets of our social life in both positive and negative ways. It is difficult to imagine how these youths can break even on their own in a world where people of a certain age are expected to fend for themselves through meaningful income-generating activities. We are not talking about a few exceptions or a few ‘failures’ but of the major ity of youths. We must recognise that we are facing an enormous social problem that, if not mitigated in time, will affect this country for generations to come. Challenges emanating from the unemployment of young people have both negative economic and social outcomes. Families and entire societies are affected when young people cannot access employment. Maybe there is something fundamentally wrong with the society, politics and the economy? This book intends to shed light on various aspects of youth unemployment. The authors depict a comprehensive picture: they highlight the desperate situation of youths who cannot access employment and resort to crime and prostitution. They discuss the informal sector, special groups and their challenges, programmes and opportunities for the youth, and the urgent need for meaningful and useful education. However, emphasis must be laid on the positive side of the otherwise depressing situation of youth unemployment by emphasising that opportunities exist, and, above all, that youths are indeed innovative and can improve their lives. v This book was inspired by the research project Youth-Led Development in Nairobi – Challenges and Opportunities (2013). The project, initiated and guided by J.M. Nebe, included students from the University of Trier (Germany) and Kenyatta University (Kenya). They elabor ated on issues that are also the subject of this book. In their research, the students came across the aston ishing creativity of Kenyan youths. In their article, Nebe and Wang'eni argue that young people should acquire a wide range of skills that fall under three main categories: founda tion skills, transferable skills and technical and vocational skills. The authors of this book have not necessarily been involved in the research project; they are mostly prac titioners who report and reflect on their experiences and their contributions will enrich the original research project. Among the issues discussed in this publication are: the desperate situ ation of the youth vis-a vis their entrepreneurial and innovative skills; the important economic and social role of the informal sector; the government programmes that are jeopardised by bureaucracy; the social and cultural factors that particularly affect women and physically- challenged persons; and the role of the education sector in preparing young people for the labour market. Youth employment is the responsibility of everyone who has the ability to influence change in this area. The government, political leaders, employers, the youth themselves and opinion leaders in society all have to share in the blame of the catastrophe that is currently youth unemployment. Situational factors have also contributed to young people languishing without employment. These factors include the weak economic situation of the country, vices like corruption, poor prioritisation of development, nepotism and tribalism not to mention the inappropri ateness of the education system for the job market. In this publication, while attempting to explain the role of the youth in their own unemployment, Judy Chege argues that the challenge is magnified by a growing deficit of communication skills, unreli ability and desire for quick money with the least effort. She argues that all these do not portray positive life skills that can positively predispose young people to employ ment opportunities and entrepreneurial success. Therefore, many young people do not possess the basic work ethics that