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Some 4,500 youth are expected to resume a special technical training after closure for five months, the Government has said.

Youth Affairs and Principal Secretary Julius Korir said the youth will join 22,000 others who are enrolled in various craftsmen courses under the Sh15 billion funded Kenya Youth Employment and Opportunities Project (KYEOP).

Korir said that the government will be issues specific instructions to ensure the programme resumes in two weeks time. 

PS said the move follows a countrywide assessment on preparedness of institutions that host the youth under the programme, mounted in 17  counties.

Programme empowers youth on technical skills in various craftsmen courses, with theory training undertaken in two months and three months of internship

“We have established that the youth are ready and eager to resume,” Korir said in a statement.

Korir said all ministry of Health protocols will be adhered to, including social distancing, regular washing of hands and use of face masks.

 Already, the youth to join the programme have been picked from 180,000 candidates who applied for lucrative opportunities for training under the Sh15 billion project.

The youth from the targeted counties applied for the latest cycle of opportunities advertised in May under the World-bank funded KYEOP, just as coronavirus crisis heightened.

New cycle

Training and internship of the programme was suspended in March due to coronavirus.   

The project was at Cycle Four at the time of suspension, sparking a new cycle tailored to prepare youth for survival in the coronavirus regime.                

“We are determined to ensure that the youth are placed to start undergoing training to be equipped to earn a living,” Korir explained.

 The five-year project that ends next year targets youth between 18- 29 years with Form Four level of education and below.