This archive report was first published on 23 June 2020.
Kitui County Governor Charity Ngilu has announced the launch of a massive skills transfer programme at the Kitui County Textile Centre (KICOTEC), aimed at training community tailors in industrial garment production.
According to Governor Ngilu, the programme will enable community tailors acquire professional skills in garment production and produce quality and affordable Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs), hospital linen, and school uniforms.
Speaking in Kitui on Monday, Governor Ngilu stated that her administration intends to expand the supply chain, increase skills development, and initiate offshoot development programmes around the KICOTEC enterprise.
"This will undoubtedly create more employment opportunities and increase the county's revenue streams," noted the Governor.
With the rise in demand for face masks, KICOTEC has increased its capacity, creating additional jobs for youth and women in the county. The centre has a workforce of over 300 people, of which 82% are women and 80% are youth.
Georgina Musembi, KICOTEC Ag. CEO, said that the centre produces surgical and cloth masks that can fit both adults and school-going children. The workforce is mainly drawn from rural parts of Kitui County, aligning with Governor Ngilu's Development Agenda on Women Empowerment and Youth Development.
Governor Ngilu stated that this move stamps the country's manufacturing sector as a crucial component in spurring the fledgling economy to the ravages of Covid-19.
At the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Governor Ngilu said that fear and panic caused members of the public to purchase and stockpile masks and other PPE supplies, depleting the local supply.
The humble beginnings of the textile centre started as a simple embroidery outfit stitching uniforms before inking a lucrative deal in 2019 to tailor over 6,000 uniforms for chiefs and their assistants countrywide.
"We will continue to offer capacity building through skill improvement amongst the youth to enable them create jobs opportunities not only for themselves but open avenues for others," said Governor Ngilu.
