Mombasa: Transport Principal Secretary (PS) Mohamed Daghar has urged Mombasa youth to embrace the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) programme to start and expand their entrepreneurship ventures. PS Daghar is leading the NYOTA project verification exercise across Mvita, Nyali, Kisauni, Jomvu, Changamwe, and Likoni sub-counties.
According to Kenya News Agency, the government's flagship initiative aims to tackle youth unemployment through practical, inclusive, and results-driven interventions. The project is funded by the World Bank and implemented through a multi-agency approach. Speaking at the Mkomani Showground in Nyali, the PS reaffirmed the government's commitment to empowering young people through the NYOTA programme, saying it will play a significant role in addressing the youth bulge in the country.
'Today, we are conducting a verification process for all applicants from 1,450 wards across the country. This will be followed by an aptitude test for those who have not undertaken it,' he said. The registration process for the government flagship project has been closed, and successful applicants will be notified next week after the verification exercise.
PS Daghar explained that NYOTA has several components, and in the first phase, successful applicants will each receive a grant of Sh50,000. 'This grant will be given to 100,000 successful Kenyans around the country. It is also a project that would encourage a culture of saving, which we need to inculcate as a nation. 12 per cent of the proceeds of this grant will be saved for the particular youth,' he stated.
The PS further disclosed that over 600,000 youth will be trained on the new Electronic Government Procurement (E-GP) to be ready to seize government tenders leveraging the Access to Government Procurement Opportunities (AGPO) programme. 'There is also another component called On Job Experience (OJE) where we will be able to formalize the different skills that youth have acquired without any particular formal training,' said the PS.
The PS challenged the youth to register in numbers to benefit from the flagship government project to actualise their business. The PS was impressed by the number of youth who have registered for the project in the Port City. He urged the Deputy County Commissioners of Mvita, Likoni, Nyali, Jomvu, Changamwe, and Kisauni to assist the youth in the verification process. 'This is not an examination but a friendly verification exercise. The Officers should assist the youth, they shouldn't be hard on them,' he encouraged.