With the high unemployment rate in the the country and internet penetration rate at 85.3 percent, Kenya has started a programme that aims to enable 1 million young people with digital skills to secure employment.
17 percent of Kenyan youth is without jobs, following Uganda and Tanzania at 6.8 percent. According to a report by BussinessReport 400 000 Kenyans have been employed through this initiative. The youth have been employed in the transcription services and software development departments on sites such as Amazon’s MTURK and the Kenyan-owned KuHustle platform.
The initiative, Ajira- meaning employment in Swahili is funded by the government in partnership with Ajira digital. The youth will be taxed a minimum of 5 percent form their salaries. The Daily Nation reports that the minister of Information Communications and Technology has committed to building 24 hour innovation hubs with free internet to help make the employment initiative more efficient.
Mentors are sent throughout the country to train and motivate the young people, and there is free Wifi provided for the training programmes as well as online registration. Ajira digital has recruited over a hundred officials from 47 country to help facilitate this programme.
Ajira digital is a portal available to all unemployed Kenyans who are willing to work online. The programme has online courses for certificates, support centres and online work available to unemployed youth. This portal aims to promote the profile of online work in Kenya and equip the youth with the tools they need to become self-employed.
Staff Writer
