Nyamira County has stepped up efforts to turn vocational training into a pathway to self-employment after 178 top-performing youth graduates received business toolkits to help them launch enterprises.
The beneficiaries are graduates from various Vocational Training Centres (VTCs) who attained distinctions in the April 2026 National Industrial Training Authority (NITA) examinations.
Their graduation is part of a wider programme under which 709 trainees enrolled in the Nyamira County-KCB Foundation full scholarship programme completed their studies in June.
Speaking during the handover ceremony at Mwongori VTC, Governor Amos Nyaribo said the initiative was intended to move young people beyond dependence on formal employment and equip them to create businesses and jobs.
“We are not only moving from helping the youth secure jobs but also sparking their start-ups,” Nyaribo said. “The ripple effect of this strategy is the creation of multiple jobs for others.”
The governor described the 178 beneficiaries as potential business leaders and challenged them to use their skills to drive economic activity across the county.
“Today, we are commissioning 178 chief executive officers into building our economy. We have elevated you to wealth creators and you have no excuse but succeed,” he said.
The initiative is being implemented through the 2Jiajiri programme, under which the county has co-invested in vocational training for more than 2,100 young people.
About 1,100 trainees have received full scholarships, while more than 1,000 others are enrolled under partial scholarships across 26 VTCs.
The county contributes Sh15,000 towards fees for each trainee, while its VTC infrastructure budget has been increased from Sh40 million to Sh50 million in the current financial year.
Nyaribo said the additional funding would support the acquisition of modern training equipment and recruitment of more instructors.
“Poverty must not stop deserving youth from accessing this transformative training opportunity,” he said.
The governor also challenged VTCs and other education stakeholders to review the courses being offered, saying training should increasingly respond to labour-market demands.
“We should put more emphasis on market-driven courses,” he said, urging young people to pursue skills that can enable them to establish enterprises rather than wait for increasingly scarce formal employment opportunities.
KCB Nyamira Branch Manager Paul Nyating’a urged the graduates to embrace partnerships as they establish and grow their businesses.
“I encourage you to build partnerships among yourselves as you build Nyamira,” he said.
Nyating’a said KCB was also exploring opportunities to expand its partnership with the county beyond education, including possible collaboration in agriculture.
For the beneficiaries, the toolkits provide an opportunity to transform classroom skills into livelihoods.
Edwin Nyangena, a graduate of Ekerubo Gietai VTC, thanked the county government and KCB Foundation for supporting their training and providing equipment to help them begin their entrepreneurial journey.
“We will start businesses and employ ourselves as we even contribute to the economic growth of Nyamira,” he said.
Nyaribo was accompanied by members of the County Executive Committee and chief officers.
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