New hope for youth as President Ruto revives Kazi Mtaani program

Unemployed youths have reason to be hopeful as President William Ruto announces the revival of the Kazi Mtaani programme, now renamed "Climate Works Mashinani." This new campaign will involve youth in environmental protection efforts.

Ruto said during a speech in Kisumu on Saturday that the new scheme is now in the planning phases and will be launched in a month. He was responding to requests from local leaders for employment development among Kisumu's youth.

Ruto highlighted that the new programme is part of a broader effort to create various job opportunities for youths across the country. In addition to the Climate Works programme, he mentioned other employment options in affordable housing projects, digital jobs, manufacturing, market work, and labour export.

“Give me one month and I will arrange it. After one month, we will have the Climate Works Mashinani program,” said Ruto

He noted that the youths will be involved in environmental conservation and other related activities. "Jobs are coming for you young people," he said.

Kazi Mtaani was initially launched in 2020 by President Uhuru Kenyatta in response to the economic challenges brought on by Covid-19.

The initiative aimed to support youths who lost their jobs due to the pandemic and to improve health and sanitation in informal settlements.

By May 2020, the first phase of Kazi Mtaani had successfully recruited 31,689 youths from eight counties severely affected by the pandemic: Mandera, Kilifi, Kwale, Mombasa, Nairobi, Nakuru, Kiambu, and Kisumu.

Funded with Sh740 million from the National Government and the World Bank, the programme provided daily wages of Sh650 in Nairobi, Mombasa, and Kisumu, and Sh600 in other counties.

Phase One focused on labour-intensive tasks such as clearing access paths, unclogging drainages, bush clearing, garbage collection, and fumigation in informal settlements, creating many job opportunities.

Encouraged by the success of Phase One, Phase Two was launched in July 2021 to extend the programme to over 1,000 informal settlements nationwide. Recruitment for this phase was conducted locally through the Nyumba Kumi initiative, in partnership with other state agencies and county governments.

Approximately 283,210 workers were recruited and divided into two cohorts, each working 11 days a month. The workers were paid between Sh400 and Sh600 in the project.

In 2022, President Ruto discontinued the Kazi Mtaani programme, labelling it outdated. He announced a shift in focus towards housing construction instead of garbage collection, with an emphasis on prioritising youth from Kibra. "Kazi Mtaani is outdated; we are now concentrating on building homes, and Kibra will be the first to benefit from this new initiative," Ruto declared.

He noted that the previous Kazi Mtaani programme offered limited job opportunities, employing only 500 youths per ward. The new housing programme aims to provide jobs for 2,500 youths and will be implemented across various regions to ensure that everyone has access to a decent home.