A group of seven youth has caught the attention of State House after their story went viral on how bureaucratic government requirements brought down their creative hustle.
In a lengthy post on social media, an unnamed member of the group detailed how the group established a recycling and manufacturing business that was doing remarkably well.
However, a visit by government officials to their business led to a close down as they could not foot the bill for the many legal handles necessary to "legalize" their business.
[caption caption="President Uhuru Kenyatta with NYS youth"]
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Following the story, State House Spokesperson Manoah Esipisu has asked for the details and contacts of parties involved in the stalled project.
The story detailing their tale of struggle and frustration begins: "All our agemates were doing the same thing like selling muguka, retail shops, boda-boda, selling clothes; but we decided to do something different.
"I came up with the idea of recycling and manufacturing and my group bought the idea," one of the members narrates.
The youth, however, reveals that it took them almost a year to raise capital through savings, selling some of their livestock and borrowing from family and friends.
"We bought machines worth about Ksh100,000 some which were operated manually with one being electric.
"Our raw materials were old tyres and we collected plastic bottles choking our rivers.
"We got a license worth Ksh6,000 from our county Government and started our business making furniture from the old tyres, rubber granules for small playgrounds, akala shoes, chain links and sold the crushed plastic bottles to factories," the youth unravels their journey.
However, a visit by Government officials from multi-agency authorities would mark the beginning of the end for their business which had been doing remarkably well.
"They told us we were doing illegal business and we should visit their offices for licenses," he narrates.
The youth traveled to Nairobi and visited The Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS) offices where they were asked for Ksh200 for each of their products and Ksh5,800 for the inspection fee.
"Getting all our products to certified by KEBS required about Ksh300,000. Then we visited the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) where we were told that we needed a Godown and licenses for recycling and manufacturing which would cost us about Ksh80,000.
[caption caption="Furniture from recycled tyres"]
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To their frustration, the cheapest Godown would cost Ksh70,000 per month and they were required to pay four months worth of rent upfront.
"When we visited the owner to negotiate for the Godown, he saw we were youth and he changed his mind and told us he needed a year payment.
"We were then told to visit two Music Corporations, KRA, Fire Inspection... almost twenty offices! We needed over a million shillings for us to get all these licenses and inspections," the youth notes on their frustrating ordeal.
Demoralized and cornered, they counted their losses and sold all stock, and closed down the otherwise promising business.
"Our dream was shattered just like that. I came to understand why youth unemployment was so high in Kenya but I hope and pray one day we will have a leader who would have the youth in their heart," the post concludes.
Hopefully, the interest expressed by the Secretary of Communication in the Office of the President may, however, mark a new dawn for the enterprising youth.
