- The initiative according to CRS country representative Rebecca Hallam will go along way in ensuring the students acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to gain employment opportunities.
- It is being implemented in Nairobi, Marsabit and Isiolo in its first year and set to be scaled to four additional counties.
Image: COURTESY
At least 160 disadvantaged youth in Nairobi have every reason to smile as they embark on a journey of empowerment and opportunity thanks to the Wezesha Vijana programme.
Sponsored by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and Safaricom Foundation, this initiative has awarded scholarships to 105 females and 55 males from marginalised backgrounds.
The youth who were selected from vulnerable backgrounds within the city are set to undertake courses in technical and vocational training institutions across Nairobi.
The initiative according to CRS country representative Rebecca Hallam will go along way in ensuring the students acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to gain employment opportunities.
Speaking during the scholarship award ceremony, Hallam further stated that this will create pathways to prosperity as well as open doors of opportunities for them to run businesses.
“We are here today to recognise a group of exceptional young individuals who have been selected for TVET scholarships," she said.
"Your talent, determination and resilience have not gone unnoticed because you have demonstrated your readiness to embrace learning to challenge yourselves and to strive for excellence,” She added.
The programme which started in September 2023 will train selected youth in electrical works, food and beverage, welding, plumbing, motor vehicle mechanics, fashion and design, beauty, driving, painting and floor tiling.
Diana Kamau, a 19-year-old beneficiary from Hospital Ward, in Mathare, could not hide her joy in securing the opportunity.
Kamau is going to study painting, decoration and sign writing in Old Mathari Technical Vocation Training Institute.
Speaking at the event, she expressed gratitude to CRS and Safaricom noting that her dreams of pursuing education and becoming a skilled painter would have remained out of reach.
"I am happy that I will be a female painter. Without this scholarship, it would have been difficult for me to go to college because of lack of funds," she said.
“I saw an advertisement for the scholarships in our church and applied. I did an interview and passed and I have been awarded a one-year scholarship and will get a certificate," she added.
The recent floods, she noted, affected their home and are currently living in a camp at Mathare Vocational School.
Safaricom Foundation chairman Joseph Ogutu said the training that the youth will receive at the TVET colleges is very specific to the needs of society.
"TVET training is a strategic area of focus within education which is a key pillar of the Safaricom Foundation strategic plan," he said.
Wezesha Vijana programme targets close to 900 youth in the first year.
It aims to reach youth who are not in employment, education, and training.
The programme will be implemented through the 3-pathway: recognition of prior learning; apprenticeship, and employment and business start-up support.
It is being implemented in Nairobi, Marsabit and Isiolo in its first year and will be scaled to four additional counties in subsequent years.
The three-year programme funded yearly seeks to improve access to quality, equitable, and inclusive skills and learning opportunities for young people.
The programme is set to contribute to the government’s goal of strengthening technical and vocational education to enhance the country’s capacity to offer practical training to the youth.
This financial year, the government has allocated Sh28.3 billion to TVET institutions across the country.
The programme is also contributing to the attainment of SDG four.