Enhancing digital aptitudes among youngsters fosters job creation
In Kenya, youth unemployment remains a significant challenge, with nearly one out of five young people between the ages of 15 and 34 unemployed. This statistic underscores deeper problems of inequality and lack of opportunity in the East African nation. However, efforts are being made to address this issue, with a focus on digital skills training and entrepreneurship.
Cleophas Ekuom, a young man from Kenya, is a shining example of the transformative power of digital skills training. After working as a security guard and completing his diploma in Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Ekuom came across an advert for a digital skills training programme and signed up, which changed the course of his life. Today, he works as an operations analyst, ICT technician, and website developer, helping businesses build online platforms.
Programmes like Digitalents and the government's Ajira Digital programme are teaching coding, marketing, business planning, and attracting customers online to young people. These initiatives aim to prepare them for the digital economy, where jobs are becoming increasingly scarce in the traditional sectors but new opportunities are opening up in the digital space.
The Kenyan government is also emphasizing the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), which shifts focus from rote academics to practical skills, creativity, and problem-solving. This curriculum aims to prepare youth with relevant skills aligned with industry needs. The government is also urged to equip schools with modern infrastructure and recruit more teachers to reduce gaps affecting skills acquisition.
Public-private partnerships and entrepreneurship support are also key to fostering job creation. The government promotes these partnerships, especially in manufacturing and other sectors, facilitating tax incentives and deregulation to encourage entrepreneurship. This approach aims to diversify the economy and provide employment pathways for youth.
International partners are also supporting digital skills training in Kenya. For instance, TechnoServe, partnered with the Mastercard Foundation, runs the BlueBiz programme, which targets youth in Kenya’s coastal counties. The programme provides young women and men with practical business skills, entrepreneurship training, and access to markets and finance within the Blue Economy—a sector linked to maritime and coastal resources.
However, to truly make a difference, these training programmes need to grow to reach more youth in underprivileged areas. Access to phones and affordable internet should be treated as a basic need, as close to half of young people in cities like Nairobi own smart devices, but in rural areas, more than a fifth do not even own a basic phone.
The future requires Kenya to ensure its youth are prepared for the digital economy. The Digital Superhighway project, which is laying down fibre cables to improve internet access across Kenya, is a step in the right direction. With the right tools and opportunities, the story of Cleophas Ekuom could become the norm, not the exception.
In summary, Kenya’s current strategies to address youth unemployment largely revolve around education reform emphasizing skills and competency (CBC), entrepreneurial support and deregulation incentives, programmes like TechnoServe’s BlueBiz for business skills in digital and maritime sectors, and aligning training with emerging digital and green economy jobs through partnerships and investments. These initiatives collectively reflect a broad and coordinated effort to equip Kenyan youth with relevant digital, entrepreneurial, and vocational skills to reduce the high youth unemployment rate.
- Cleophas Ekuom's transformation from a security guard to an operations analyst, ICT technician, and website developer showcases how digital skills training can pave the way for personal-growth and career-development opportunities in Kenya's digital economy.
- The Kenyan government, through initiatives like the Ajira Digital programme and the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), is focusing on equipping youth with practical skills needed in the digital economy and attracting customers online, thereby preparing them for job-search success in the digital space.
- To further address unemployment among Kenya's youth, it's crucial to expand digital skills training programs to reach more individuals in underprivileged areas and ensure equitable access to affordable internet and smart devices, as many rural communities still lack basic telecommunication infrastructure.
