Ruto’s Government Launches NYOTA Project to Lift 800,000 Youth Out of Joblessness.
By Peace Muthoka.
Nairobi, September 15 – The Government of Kenya, in partnership with the World Bank, has rolled out the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) project, a five-year initiative targeting 800,000 vulnerable youth across all 1,450 wards.
The project, which began training its first beneficiaries this week in Kakamega, Vihiga, Bungoma, and Busia counties, is designed to increase employment, enhance earnings, and nurture a culture of savings among young people. It focuses on those with limited formal education and limited access to opportunities, who remain most disadvantaged in the job market.
Cabinet Secretary for Cooperatives and MSMEs Development, Hon. FCPA Dr. Wycliffe Oparanya, said NYOTA represents a shift from short-term fixes to sustainable empowerment.
“Our goal is to give young people more than just hope we are creating lasting systems that open opportunities for them to learn, work, save, and run successful businesses,” Dr. Oparanya said.
Over the course of five years, the project is expected to create 110,000 entrepreneurs, certify 20,000 artisans through the Recognition of Prior Learning program, connect 90,000 youth to employment, and train at least 600,000 in accessing government procurement opportunities and savings schemes.
Each trained participant will receive a start-up grant of KSh 50,000 and undergo two months of mentorship to ensure their ventures thrive. “After training and mentorship, disbursement of start-up capital will begin, enabling youth to launch businesses with full support from development experts,” Dr. Oparanya noted.
The rollout is structured in three cohorts across eight regional clusters to ensure rapid national coverage. Beyond business support, the project also incorporates savings mobilization through the NSSF-managed Haba Haba scheme and digital empowerment to connect youth to markets and financial systems.
Agencies implementing the program include the Micro and Small Enterprises Authority (MSEA), National Employment Authority (NEA), National Industrial Training Authority (NITA), and the National Social Security Fund (NSSF), under the coordination of the State Department for Youth Affairs and Creative Economy.
The formal launch of NYOTA will be presided over by President William Ruto in the coming weeks, coinciding with the first disbursement of start-up capital to beneficiaries in Western Kenya.
For many like 22-year-old Janet from Busia, who joined the inaugural training class, the project is a timely breakthrough. “I had given up on ever starting my salon business. Now with the training and mentorship, I feel confident I will make it,” she said.
With similar stories expected across the country, NYOTA is being hailed as one of Kenya’s most ambitious youth empowerment programs yet.
