The National Youth Service (NYS) has launched the NYS Naivasha Conference and Training Centre in a move to tap into Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) industry.
The facility is part of strategic steps NYS is taking to reduce its heavy reliance on the national exchequer by actively exploring alternative revenue-generating avenues.
The facility is situated in the heart of Naivasha’s fast-growing hospitality corridor.
The hub is expected to attract both public and private sector clientele for training, retreats, and events — generating income while also offering practical training opportunities for NYS recruits.
The event, presided over by the Principal Secretary for the State Department for Public Service and Human Capital Development Jane Imbunya, brought together representatives from government, the private sector, and development partners to celebrate the milestone in NYS’s journey toward institutional self-reliance and sustainability.
“There is no reverse gear. Commissioning of this facility reaffirms our commitment to making the National Youth Service self-reliant as it offers training opportunities to our young people,” Imbunya said.
The facility will also host training programmes for NYS recruits enrolled in the School of Hospitality and Catering, providing a real-world learning environment that blends technical instruction with professional exposure.
Imbunya lauded the initiative as “a demonstration of how public institutions can align national development goals with enterprise and innovation.”
She noted that the Centre would “create opportunities for young Kenyans to learn, serve, and generate value for the nation,” reinforcing NYS’s commitment to financial sustainability.
Speaking at the event, NYS Commandant General James K. Tembur emphasised that revenues from the facility would be reinvested into service operations, training programmes, and youth development projects.
He added that the centre’s dual purpose — as both a business enterprise and a training arena — reflects NYS’s evolving model of empowerment through enterprise.
The NYS Naivasha Conference and Training Centre will be open to both public and private sector clients.
Its launch signals NYS’s growing role in supporting Kenya’s economic diversification, creating jobs, and preparing the next generation of skilled professionals in hospitality, logistics, and event management.
The hub is expected to attract both public and private sector clientele for training, retreats, and events — generating income while also offering practical training opportunities for NYS recruits.
Additionally, NYS is leveraging its extensive agricultural land, transport fleet, and technical expertise to boost income. Through its farms, the Service is producing food both for internal consumption and for sale to external markets.
This shift is part of a broader institutional reform agenda aimed at making NYS more financially sustainable, self-reliant, and better positioned to contribute meaningfully to national development.
