Kenyan youth who are interested in business ventures are set to begin receiving Ksh50,000 each starting this month, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has said.
Kindiki, who spoke during a stakeholder meeting in Kisii County on Thursday afternoon, said the money would be disbursed to youths registered under the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) programme.
NYOTA is a five-year transformative agenda by the government and funded by the World Bank. It aims to empower youth by addressing unemployment, income insecurity, and limited savings.
Kindiki said the government had already released Ksh28 billion to be distributed to 70 youth in each ward across the country who are interested in starting small-scale businesses.
"We have a very big programme for the youth, both male and female; it is called NYOTA. We are giving money in all the wards across the country to support 70 businesses in each ward," the DP said.
"The government has released Ksh28 billion; starting this month, 70 businesses in each ward will be funded. Each youth will receive Ksh50,000 for expanding their businesses," he added.
The DP reiterated that the money would only be disbursed to registered youth-owned businesses, with Kindiki urging the youth to take advantage of the rare opportunity.
For elderly Kenyans, Kindiki announced that the government had put in place various strategies to ensure they received similar support, adding that the government was out to help all Kenyans regardless of their age.
"Let us help our youth to secure employment. For those who are not youth, like mama mboga and other business people, we have many interventions to support all businesses," the DP emphasised.
The NYOTA programme, which is a scale-up of the Kenya Youth Employment Opportunities Project (KYEOP), aims to create a sustainable and long-term stream of employment for Kenyan youth between the ages of 18 and 29 years.
The programme is currently under implementation by the government through the Micro and Small Enterprises Authority (MSEA) and targets over 110,000 youth in the country.
Meanwhile, Kindiki's latest announcement comes a week after the government closed the application for youth seeking to acquire the funds. The application window was closed on May 15, paving the way for shortlisting.
