Govt: How New Initiative Will Earn 100,000 Youth Ksh50,000 Each
The Ministry announced plans for the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) project which is poised to transform the lives of 820,000 unemployed youth nationwide.
Marvin Chege 
Youth in Kenya could take home Ksh50,000 each to support their ventures if an upcoming initiative by the Ministry of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports is anything to go by.
The Ministry on Wednesday, December 11 announced plans for the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) project which is poised to transform the lives of 820,000 unemployed youth nationwide.
In preparation for the first intake, the Cabinet Secretary for Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports, Kipchumba Murkomen, met with a delegation from the World Bank to align on the next steps for this ambitious five-year initiative.
This initiative will involve 100,000 youth with business ideas who will receive financial support to help them set up their ventures.
Sports CS Kipchumba Murkomen meeting a delegation from the World Bank on December 11, 2024. /KIPCHUMBA MURKOMEN
Through collaboration with the World Bank, youth selected for the programme will receive Ksh50,000 each.
"NYOTA aims to equip Kenyan youth with critical skills and resources to secure meaningful employment and foster entrepreneurship. Among its key highlights, 100,000 youth with viable business ideas will receive Sh50,000 each in start-up capital to launch or grow their ventures," the Ministry stated in part.
"Spearheaded by the Government of Kenya in collaboration with the World Bank, the project represents a significant commitment to tackling youth unemployment and addressing skills mismatches."
The program’s first intake is expected to open soon, offering an opportunity for young Kenyans to harness their potential and contribute to the country’s economic growth.
The Ministry affirmed that it remains steadfast in its mission to empower youth and build a brighter, more inclusive future.
NYOTA will be a scale-up project of the Kenya Youth Employment and Opportunities Project (KYEOP) and will build on lessons learned in the implementation of the KYEOP project, whose objective is to increase employment and opportunities for earnings and savings for targeted youth in all 47 Counties.
The project will have four components which include improving youth employability, supporting youth entrepreneurship, supporting savings for Kenyan youth in the informal sector, and strengthening systems and capacity to sustain youth employment and savings initiatives.
KYEOP was an ongoing five-year World Bank-funded project whose implementation started in the 2016/2017 financial year and ended in August 2023.
The project impacted the lives of youths across the 17 counties where 97,420 youths benefitted from business start-up grants and 68,200 youths with essential skills and employment opportunities.
741 Youth benefitted from the business plan competition which targeted 750 youths and saw 250 of them receiving Ksh3.6 million and 491 received Ksh900,000 for businesses.
