Vice President Ligaty Gachagua urged young people to focus on monetizing their talents as part of the solution to end unemployment.
Speaking at the forum dubbed “Mayous Twe Set Initiative” held at Nyeri National Polytechnic in Nyeri County, the Vice President said arts and creative economy were priorities in transforming talent into livelihoods under the Digital Super Highway pillar of the Kenya Kwanzaa Plan.
While noting that great progress had been achieved in the fight against illegal brews, narcotics and substance abuse, he called on the youth to harness their potential to benefit from the thriving creative economy.
Answering questions from young people and tertiary students at the National Youth Forum on Saturday night, the Vice President said the government was ramping up investments in the creative economy to boost job creation and strengthen entrepreneurship.
“Kenya Kwanzaa administration has five pillars, one of which is creative economy and digital highway. We are monetising the arts so that all artistes, be they content creators, dancers, actors, can use their talents in income generating activities. We will continue to nurture the youth because they are vibrant, knowledgeable and very encouraging. I have a lot of respect for the youth and will continue to listen and engage with them,” Gachagua said.
He said the Ruto administration was focused on youth empowerment and creating opportunities in the fields of sports and the arts.
The event, which was attended by thousands of youth, saw the Vice President be joined by many leaders and young politicians, including Chairperson of the Kenya Young Parliamentarians Association and Member of Parliament for Manyatta Constituency, Gitonga Mukunzi, as well as music artiste and content creator, Bahati.
On employment in the country, the Vice President said the government is keen to create opportunities. He urged the youth to be proactive as their dreams can come true.
He also called on the trainee teachers to be patient with their employer, the Teachers Employment Commission, saying the government had already assured them that their employment terms would be converted to permanent employment and pensionable after two years.
“We have over 400,000 trained teachers registered with the Teachers Service Commission, but because of financial constraints, we can only employ a limited number of people. Last year, we employed 56,000 teachers. Other teachers are also employed as interns with the guarantee that after two years they will be automatically hired as permanent employees with pensions. I urge them to be patient because being employed as an intern is better than staying at home,” Gachagua said.
He continued, “Getting an internship is a good step forward and after two years the employment terms will be automatically revised. I would like to thank the Headmaster for taking a firm decision on teacher employment and doing all he can to ensure that our children have enough teachers. With limited financial space, we will continue to make steady progress to absorb teachers.”
He said the government was also exploring employment opportunities for people living overseas.
Regarding illegal brewing and drug and substance abuse, Gachagua said the government was making progress in tackling the menace.
“Illegal brews, drugs and substance abuse is a major concern to the President and me and the entire government. We no longer have young people who can do manual labour. We have made some efforts to address illegal brews, drugs and substance abuse by ensuring that drugs and illegal brews are not easily available. People are pessimistic right now but I am encouraged that broken families have been repaired,” he said.
He said when the Ruto administration came to power, a generation was being lost to illegal liquor and drugs, especially in the Central Region.
“There are too many cases of drugs being sold openly on the streets and illegal alcohol being sold across the country,” he said.
