The government has been asked to draft policies that will compel its agencies and corporates to pay tenders within a specified time to save youths from sinking into debts.
According to the chairman of Friends of Youth and Women association Allan Mburu, many youths have been sinking into poverty after taking loans to finance tenders which then take too long to be paid.
Mburu said it is unfortunate that some youths have even resorted to suicide after losing all their property to auctioneers over unpaid loans.
Speaking on Tuesday in Murang’a town, he said the situation is worse in the county governments many of which take years to pay contractors.
In 2013, President Uhuru Kenyatta directed all government departments and agencies to award 30 percent of their tenders to youth and women without competition from established firms to empower them economically.
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But Mburu noted that the directive only empowers youths from well-off backgrounds who are able to finance their tenders without having to borrow from financial institutions.
He said delayed payments have discouraged many youths from bidding for contracts from both the government and private companies over the fear of losing their property.
“Many youths do not even have properties of their own to use as collateral when borrowing money and have to rely on their friends and relatives who have also grown apprehensive,” said the chairman of the association that handles advocacy on socio-economic issues.
Mburu said it is time for the government to put control measures into cushion youths from falling into the jaws of auctioneers and slipping into utter poverty.
“Many procurement offices require contractors to part with some money for their tenders to be paid which youths are unable to raise,” he noted.
The only way to save them, he said, is to draft policies that will make it criminal for any organization to delay payments beyond a certain period of time.
He said such a policy will encourage youths to take advantage of credit services offered by banks to fund the lucrative tenders being offered in both public and private institutions.
“This way, we can create more employment and boost the economy by empowering youths to start their own companies to access the tenders and raise their living standards,” Mburu said.
He said should failure by the government to regulate the payment of tenders defeats the purpose of the President’s directive and makes them a reserve of the wealthy.
The youth leader said organizations should ensure they float tenders only when they have sufficient money in their accounts to pay for them to avoid unnecessary delays.
“We cannot sit back and watch as youths continue to suffer. I will write to the Public Procurement Authority asking them to initiate the process of drafting the laws as soon as possible,” Mburu added.