With the high rate of unemployment being experienced in the country, an MCA has established a shoe factory provides a lifeline to about 10 youths in Murang’a county.
The shoe factory established at Kahatia shopping centre in Kiharu constituency by Murarandia MCA Peter Munga opened its doors in October this year with the objective of providing skills to residents and boost the local economy.
The factory, established in a highly agricultural area whose economy depends on tea, has provided an alternative source of income for local youths.
With dwindling farm sizes, most local youths are forced to join the boda boda sector or work as casual workers in local farms.
Frustrated with the meagre returns and lack of jobs, many youths who have graduated from tertiary institutions have fallen into the trap of alcoholism that has devastated their families.
The leather factory sources its primary raw materials and animal skins, from the local slaughterhouses that are then processed before the youths make the shoes.
With a wide catchment, the factory is a beehive of activities as workers receive orders to make shoes while others are sold through local shops and supermarkets.
The youths are also trained to bottle water that is supplied to residents holding social events and in local shops.
The MCA said the project is in line with his manifesto to create employment for local youths and help make their lives better.
“It is only through initiatives that we can bridge the gap between the rich and the poor in the community,” he said.
The youths working in the factory receive on average Sh800 per day, far above the normal payment rate for casual work.
The shoes sell at between Sh1,000 and Sh1,500.
Last month, the MCA donated 500 pairs of shoes made in the factory to Pre-Primary 1 (PP1) pupils graduating to Grade 1 in a function attended by Governor Irungu Kang’ata.
He said his aim is to expand the project into other parts of the ward to reach more youths and change their lives positively.
“Through water bottling, we are targeting social functions which source for water from external bottlers,” Kang'ata said.
The MCA said he has taken the initiative of advertising the products being made through the factory in the villages to create awareness and widen its clients base.
One of the benefiting youths, Elizabeth Wanja, enrolled in the leather factory seeking to acquire shoe-making skills to uplift her living standards.
“I could not just ignore such an opportunity to get free skills that can help make my future better and I am lucky to be among the first group to benefit,” the 30-year-old woman said.
Leather works trainer, Ransugu Muiruri, said the youths will acquire skills that could help them start their own businesses and become self-employed while providing employment to others.
“We are making schools for school-going children, casual and official wear. The children's shoes are selling at Sh1,000, while other shops sell at a much higher price,” Muiruri said.
The project, he said, is God-sent and has transformed the economy of the area, adding that it will benefit many local youths.
