Graduates have appealed to the government to train its focus on job creation so as to free them from the shackles of unemployment that drive them into drugs.
Speaking during the graduation ceremony of Milestone Institute of Professional Studies (MIPS) when 600 graduates were conferred with diplomas and certificates in diverse disciplines, the youth lamented that joblessness is rendering thousands of them unproductive and pushing them to antisocial vices such as alcoholism, drug abuse and crime.
Led by Isabela Mugechi and Stephen Njoroge, they said that time is ripe for the government to create sustainable avenues that will create jobs and enable the skilled youth eke a decent living.
“The dire unemployment situation many graduates face is disturbing. The youthful and energetic unemployed population …is pushing us to demand for solutions from a government that promised them answers to their challenges,” Mugechi said.
She claimed that despite investing and undergoing training in higher learning institutions, they end up being frustrated, lose hope and sink into depression.
She noted that the government should also remove bureaucracies in accessing State funding to enable them initiate their own income generating ventures.
“We have skills and technical know-how but the major problem is access or securing seed capital to start our own enterprises. There are numerous government funding opportunities but accessing the funds is usually a tall order. We want the process to be eased so that we can establish our own enterprises and become job creators as well,” Mugechi averred.
Njoroge pleaded with the State to ease the process of accessing travel documents, including Visas and Passports, to enable them seek jobs abroad.
“Despite the government’s assurance of a seamless process through enhanced bilateral and diplomatic relationship with other countries, the problem has continued to recur forcing many of us to remain in the country jobless and hopeless,” Njoroge said.
This was echoed by MIPS Founder and Director George Maina, who called on the government to engage other States with deficient workforce to open avenues to educated Kenyan youth.
“The government has been enhancing exportation of skilled labour to other countries as it seeks to address unemployment in the country. We are hopeful that our government will reach out to more nations so that our skilled youth can secure well-paying jobs in those countries,” Maina said.
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