Garissa leaders have urged the youth to join technical institutions to address drugs and substance abuse and unemployment.
They said the vices are affecting the youth and have contributed to the many cases of insecurity. Garissa Township MP Dekow Mohamed said many evils in the society revolve around lack of employment and a vigorous campaign to encourage the youth to embrace skilled training should be conducted.
“We are committed to sensitising our youth and parents to embrace Tvet (Technical Vocational Education and Training) as a viable path to employability and self-reliance.
There are so many colleges not only in this town but the county, offering technical courses that can greatly change the lives of the youth. But it starts with attitude change, this can only be achieved if we collectively talk to them,” he said.
Dekow said Kenya Kwanza government has envisioned Tvet as a critical tool in transforming the lives of individuals in marginalised, semi-arid and arid areas.
He spoke during a leadership conference at the Garissa University under the theme “Our Youth: Our Future”. The conference sought to come up with solutions on the societal vices affecting the youth.
“As leaders in Garissa we need to have honest and candid conversations on how to address these issues,” he said.
Garissa Governor Nathif Jama, Woman Representative Udgoon Siyad, former elected leaders, professionals, parents, religious leaders and security officers attended the conference.
Jama said the government has invested heavily in Tvets and it is unfortunate that the youth still shy away from them.
“It worries me that despite the huge investment in technical training institutes, our numbers remain very low. As a community, we need to change our mindset that the only gainful employment can come from white-collar jobs. The reality is that those jobs are fast diminishing,” he said.
Jama said counties cannot employ everyone hence the importance to acquire technical skills to get employment in other sectors.
National Council for Population and Development director Mohamed Sheikh described the conference as timely.
He said the current shortage of skills is as a result of many youth having their eyes fixed on office jobs. Sheikh said the dependency ratio stands at more than 90 per cent and the poverty rate at 64.5 per cent making it the county with the third highest poverty levels.
“These are statistics that should worry all of us, especially when we have more than 60 per cent of the population not going to school. This is having a negative effect on the country’s growth,” he said.
Nasteh Farah, a youth leader in Garissa county, challenged the youth to think outside the box if they are to succeed.
“My appeal to my fellow youth is
let us open our minds and take up
courses such as plumbing, tailoring,
salon and beauty therapy, welding,
masonry, carpentry and other courses,” he said.