This archive report was first published on 22 July 2019.
On a weekend in 2019, Safaricom's BLAZE initiative brought its Be Your Own Boss program to the Kenya Medical Training College Grounds in Kisumu, marking the third summit of its fourth season.
Previous summits had taken place in Kakamega and Kisii counties, drawing over 3,500 youth each and offering them a chance to learn from BLAZE mentors on building careers and enterprises.
“Since the inception of BLAZE in 2016, we have worked hard at transforming the lives of our young people, this year, our target is to empower 1.3 million youth by providing access to a platform that allows them to connect, learn and showcase their talents,” said Michael Joseph, Acting Safaricom CEO.
BLAZE has expanded its youth engagement program to 18 summits this season, up from three last year, engaging more than 26,000 youth. To complement the summits, BLAZE has developed a new platform called BLAZE LINK, an aggregator of e-learning resources that enables young people to upgrade their skills through online courses.
“BLAZE LINK is our new addition to the Be Your Own Boss (BYOB) platform, which focuses on empowering the youth as they journey towards success. We are leveraging on the power of digital platforms so that we can reach those who cannot make it to the BYOB summits and creation camps,” said Mr. Joseph.
