Kenya’s Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Development has launched a strategy aimed at tackling the country’s growing youth unemployment problem through the Nyota Initiative, a programme backed by the World Bank to equip young people with skills and business opportunities.
Speaking to NTV on October 14, 2025, Principal Secretary Susan Mang’eni said the programme is designed to “enhance youth employability and expand job opportunities” by certifying existing skills, offering practical training, and supporting young entrepreneurs with funding and mentorship.
She highlighted that Kenya has a workforce potential of over 20 million people, yet only 3.5 million are formally employed, leaving the majority to survive in informal jobs.
“Every year, more than one million youth enter the job market, but only about 200,000 get absorbed. This leaves a huge deficit, making youth unemployment one of the country’s biggest challenges,” Mang’eni said.
To address this gap, the Nyota Initiative will focus on four main areas: improving employability, increasing job openings, supporting entrepreneurship, and connecting youth to sustainable markets.
Under the employability programme, 20,000 young people with existing but uncertified skills will be assessed and certified through NITA and TVET institutions. In addition, 90,000 others will participate in apprenticeship programmes.
“We want to make sure even those who learned skills informally can compete in the job market,” she said.
The initiative also aims to create 100,000 youth-led businesses nationwide through training, mentorship, and seed funding of up to KSh50,000, which will be released in stages following classroom and practical sessions.
“Entrepreneurs are not born; they are made. We want to train and hand-hold them into successful business owners,” Mang’eni emphasized.
Furthermore, 600,000 existing youth entrepreneurs will be trained to help them access government procurement opportunities under the AGPO policy. The ministry is also developing a digital marketplace to connect youth-owned enterprises to both local and international markets.
“This is a comprehensive, inclusive programme targeting marginalized youth aged 18 to 29, and up to 35 for persons with disabilities to build a generation of skilled, empowered, and self-reliant young Kenyans,” Mang’eni concluded.
On the exclusion of university and college graduates from the Nyota Initiative, the PS said other programmes are being developed to support tertiary-educated youth.