This archive report was first published on 28 November 2019.
Employment opportunities for young people in Kenya are scarce, and the main barrier to securing a job is not often a lack of technical qualification, but rather the absence of essential life skills.
According to a study commissioned by the Zizi Afrique Foundation under the Ujana360 program, life skills such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving are currently considered the most important requirements to make youth more employable in the current competitive job market.
The study, which was conducted in 2017, found that core values emerged as the second most critical skillset, followed by social-emotional skills. Technical skills, on the other hand, emerged fourth in both formal and informal sectors.
Interestingly, the youth themselves believe that improvements in curriculum and other training resources in TVETs (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) can improve the quality of training and employability.
Some 58% of Youth Not in Employment, Education and Training (NEET) in Kenya see vocational training as the most useful in finding a job, while only 15% vouch for university training.
The government is improving the curriculum with the development of Competence-Based Education Training (CBET) framework and other programs which aim to improve the content of courses offered.
“The quality of the curriculums offered at post-secondary institutions needs to be more comprehensive to ensure that the youth NEET have the skills required by employers,” says Mr. Mudit Sharma, a researcher at Dalberg Design.
According to the study, life skills emerged top at 20.1% for those in formal employment, 21.7% for informal employment, and 20.0% for the self-employed. Core values came second at 17.6%, 20.1%, and 17.4% respectively. Social-emotional skills were ranked third with 11.3% in formal employment, 13.7% in informal, and 11.3% in self-employment.
The study also found that male youth have almost five times as high chances to be employed than females. On household poverty levels, a young person from a wealthy household has significantly higher chances (40%) of accessing employment over their counterparts from poor households.
