President William Ruto has announced plans to double the number of new recruits absorbed into the National Youth Service (NYS) annually beginning in 2024.
Speaking in Nakuru County during the 86th NYS pass-out parade on Friday, March 3, Ruto noted that the NYS will recruit 20,000 Kenyans up from its current 10,000 recruits.
That means 40,000 people will enroll every year into the service in the two intakes NYS undertakes.
This, he noted, is aimed at instilling patriotism and giving opportunities to Kenyans from every part of the country, especially, rural areas.
"Our definition and understanding of development must have the active contribution of an overwhelming majority of youth as its foundational principle and the inspiring profile of this cohort attests to this.
"For this reason, we want to enhance the annual intake from 10,000 every intake to 20,000 every intake," the Head of State directed.
11,692 graduates comprising 8,421 servicemen and 3271 servicewomen were absorbed into the force during the Friday event.
The Head of State also noted that the NYS servicemen and servicewomen will also be instrumental in planting one billion trees in the next five years. This will occupy on 40,000 acres.
Furthermore, 80,000 acres of land will be used for commercial food production according to the President. This is meant to make the NYS self-reliant.
An additional 720 acres of farmland will be used to plant maize and potatoes to provide food for the NYS and also for other Kenyans.
Moreover, the President announced that he had instructed several ministries including the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Interior and National Administration, and the Ministry of Tourism to reserve 30 per cent of jobs for NYS graduates.
He argued that the move will encourage many young people to enroll in NYS.
The President added that equipment used by NYS will be refurbished and used in the construction of 100 dams and water pans annually throughout the country.
He also mentioned that 2,800 government services were already available online. He noted that all government services would be available online in the next 6 months.
