I provided professional consultancy services towards the development of the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 - 2027) on behalf of the Kenya Youth Senate and Horn of Africa Youth Network

1. Prepared by:
Desmond O. Boi & Richard O. Bonyo, PhD (WIP, UoN)
KENYA YOUTH MANIFESTO
(2022 – 2027)
PUTTING INTO ACTION KENYA’S YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AGENDA

2. KENYA YOUTH MANIFESTO (2022 – 2027)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREAMBLE .................................................................................................................................................. ii
ACKNOWLEDGMENT...............................................................................................................................iii
PREFACE......................................................................................................................................................iv
FORWARD....................................................................................................................................................vi
ACCRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ................................................................................................viii
SECTION 1..............................................................................................................................................- 10 -
THE PURPOSE STATEMENT OF THE KENYA YOUTH MANIFESTO.....................................- 10 -
SECTION 2..............................................................................................................................................- 12 -
POLICY & LEGISLATION FRAMEWORK GUIDING MANIFESTO PREPARATION ...........- 12 -
SECTION 3..............................................................................................................................................- 13 -
KENYA YOUTH MANIFESTO DEVELOPMENT ACTORS AND DELIBERATIONS..............- 13 -
SECTION 4..............................................................................................................................................- 18 -
THEMATIC AREAS FOR ENHANCING YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND EMPOWERMENT IN
KENYA ....................................................................................................................................................- 18 -
4.1.Theme No. 1: Youth, Agriculture and Food Security ....................................................................- 18 -
4.2.Theme No. 2: Youth, Culture and Sports........................................................................................- 21 -
4.3.Theme No. 3: Youth, Research, Innovation and Development .....................................................- 22 -
4.4.Theme No. 4: Youth, Environment and Nature Conservation......................................................- 23 -
4.5.Theme No. 5: Youth, Education, Science and Technology............................................................- 25 -
4.6.Theme No. 6: Youth, Gender, Community Development & Civil Society Strengthening..........- 27 -
4.7.Theme No. 7: Youth and Health ......................................................................................................- 29 -
4.8.Theme No. 8: Youth, Industrialization and SME Development ...................................................- 32 -
4.9.Theme No. 9: Youth, Peace and Security........................................................................................- 35 -
4.10.Theme No. 10: Youth, Investment Promotion and Private Sector Development......................- 37 -
4.11.Theme No. 11: Youth, Leadership and Governance....................................................................- 38 -
4.12.Theme No. 12: Youth and Trade. ..................................................................................................- 39 -

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PREAMBLE
PREAMBLE:
The Youth of the Republic of Kenya, recognizing their central and cardinal role in the social-
political and economic development of the Republic of Kenya, within the wider global, continental,
regional and National Youth Development Frameworks;
Having gathered under the umbrella of Kenya Youth Manifesto, and representing Youth from
diverse geo-political landscape of Kenya,
Recognizing the significance of our diverse backgrounds, experiences, qualifications,
desires/aspirations and religions and political persuasions;
Agreeing that despite our differences, we all believe in a common vision for a better Kenya for all
Kenyans, and that time for the youth to stand up and take their rightful positions and act had come;
Sharing a firm conviction that youth are the leading segment of Kenya’s population characterized
by loss of hope, derailed realization of their social-political, economic and psychosocial
development and all manner of challenges that come up with them;
Convicted that youth can no longer take a back sit and remain idle observers of processes and
programs with direct bearing on their well-being and emancipation aspirations;
No longer ready and willing to accept misrule, mis-governance, corruption, non-equitable role
distribution, poor implementation, monitoring and audit of the national laws, policies, programs and
projects targeted at the youth and other vulnerable groups in the society. Further no longer willing
to see Kenya Government laxity to domestic and implement fully specific international protocols
and treaties on Youth and Politics, Youth and Social-economic Development and other areas of
youth active involvement in national, regional and international development;
Reaffirming the necessity of cultivating and sustaining a firm belief in the role of law, practice of
democracy, separation of powers, social-market economics, subsidiarity, national values and
principals, family virtues and values and our National Heritage as a free democratic society guided
and governed by law;
Committing ourselves to propagate our common aspirations as communities and as a nation, we
commit to the following manifesto.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The making of a Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027) is a culmination of a wide consultative
process that brought together very many young stakeholders of diverse social, geographical,
economic, cultural, political and other forms of persuasions to a strategic thinking and reasoning
processes, drawing lessons from the prevailing geopolitical landscape in Kenya.
Of particular mention include but not limited to youth representing the following organizations,
political parties, community-based organizations and institutions: Kenya Africa National Union
(KANU), Orange Democratic Party (ODM), Jubilee Party, WIPER Party, NARK Kenya, Kenya
Youth Senate, Amani National Congress (ANC), HOAYN, Chama Cha Kazi, United Democratic
Alliance (UDA) Party, Silver Lining Kenya, Youth Alive Kenya, Kenya Agribusiness Alliance, and
other youth-led groups that were directly or indirectly consulted during the process.
The process could have not been possible without the support from Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF)
also known as Hanns Seidel Stiftung. Of special mention is the Foundation’s Kenya Country
Director, Daniel Seilberling.
The astute youth mobilization, organization and facilitation skills of the Kenya Youth Senate under
the able leadership of Sankale Ole Keis, Director General of the Kenya Youth Senate cannot be
over-emphasized. Without his support and team coordination approach, this process could have
been a still birth. In this layer, it is also prudent to appreciate Mr. David Momany (Technical
Advisor), Robertson Kabucho (Programs Manager, HSF) and Damaris Kariuki (Project
Coordinator, HSF) for their invaluable support to the process.
We are very grateful to the professional and technical guidance we received from our Lead
Facilitator, Mr. Desmond Ogalo Boi and his principal assistant, Richard Ochieng Bonyo, PhD (WIP,
UoN). Through their support, we were able to navigate a sea of information and contributions from
different actors and stakeholders in the process to finally come up with this document, published as,
“The Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027)”.
Last but never the least, special regards goes to research assistants and copy typists who ensured
that the document was processed in real-time and that it outputs reflected the consultative processes
that took place at the Maanzoni Lodge, Machakos County. Special mention goes to John Collins
Maxwell Ochieng of Mbita High School and Flavian Ouma of Progeny International (Consulting).

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PREFACE
Youth Senate Kenya (YSK) is a is an independent, non-partisan development and advocacy youth
serving organization working towards a just, equitable and progressive society where young people
fully enjoy their economic, social and political rights and opportunities. Founded in 2014 YSK was
created specifically to spearhead a Youth Led Development model in Kenya with a mandate to
enrich a democratic dialogue and ensure youth engagement in national and regional affairs. YSK
work on a youth leadership programme across the 47 Counties with the support of County Youth
Senators with the aim to promote value-driven leadership for democratic governance. We have
formed both a national and regional network of youth action partners whom we work with to
advance a youth-led approach towards development. The approach pursues youth-led development
through its main thematic areas including but not limited to; Democracy, Political leadership and
Governance, Youth Economic Empowerment, Gender Mainstreaming, Human Rights Advocacy,
Youth Peace and Security, Civic Education and Awareness as well as monitoring of public sector
reforms targeting the youth.
In pursuance of the vision of the Kenya Youth which is a Youth Nation with an Empowered Youth
Population through the strategic processes of implementing the mission statement of the Kenya
Youth through policies, programs, projects and activities aimed at harnessing the productive
energies of the youth towards democratic governance, sustainable economic development and
enhancement of peace and security across communities in Kenya.
It is in this breadth that the Youth Senate Kenya, with financial and technical support from HSF
gathered youth from all sectors and strides to initiate a wider consultative process towards
generating of ideas that could then be truncated into the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027) as
is now presented to all Presidential Candidates in the 9th
August 2022 Presidential Elections. The
Kenya Youth Manifesto is a blue-print that presents, in a sectoral by sectoral manner using 12
thematic focal areas, the dreams and aspirations of the youth that they wish to see integrated in each
side of the political divide’s respective manifestos and subsequent National Development Planning
and Budgeting focus.
The Youth Manifesto recognizes the symbiotic roles of both the National and County Governments
in so far as development agenda implementation is concerned. It is therefore the commitment of the

6. v | P a g e
Youth of Kenya to work with and support both levels of Government in pursuing all policies,
programs and projects that have been proposed through the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027).
The Youth of Kenya further commit to support the implementation of this manifesto and call upon
all the relevant stakeholders including but not limited to the respective Coalitions of Political Parties
and other stand-alone political parties fielding elective candidates, not only for Presidential seat, but
across all other political leadership seats in Kenya including Members of the Respective County
Assemblies (MCAs), Members of Parliament (National Assembly and Senate) and other key
stakeholders to embrace and support the implementation of this Manifesto.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
……………………………………………….
The Chief Executive Officer,
Kenya Youth Senate.

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FORWARD
The youth of Kenya are privileged to present a harmonized, detailed, sector -based and youth- need
oriented manifesto to the Kenya’s presidential candidates, Rt. Hon. Dr. Raila Amolo Odinga
(Azimio La Umoja Coalition), H.E. Dr. William Ruto (UDA). The manifesto is simply referred to
as throughout this document as the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022-2027).
The Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022-2027) clearly and insightfully presents the needs and aspirations
of the youth of Kenya around twelve thematic areas including: Youth, Agriculture and Food
Security; Youth, Culture and Sports; Youth, Innovators and Development; Youth, Environment and
Nature Conservation; Youth, Education, Science and Technology; youth, Gender, community
Development and Civil Society Strengthening; Youth and Health; Youth, Industrialization and SME
Development; Youth Peace and Security; Youth Investment Promotion and Private Sector
Development, Youth Leadership and Governance; and Youth and Trade.
As a progressive document, the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022-2027) has derived its critical
reference, from some of the key Youth Development Policy and Program development framework,
both at the county and at international level. Some of this vital sources of information regarding
policy, programming and project design parameters necessary for putting into action Kenya’s Youth
Development Agenda include Africa Youth Charter (2006); Kenya’s Big four Agenda (2018-2022);
sustainability Development Goals (SDGs, 2010-2030); National Youth Service Act (2018); Kenya
Youth Development Policy (2018); Medium and Small Enterprise Act, 2012); Uwezo Fund (Public
Finance Management Act, 2014); Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act (2015); Employment
Policy and Strategy for Kenya, Sessional Paper no. 4 of 2013; National Government Affirmative
Action Fund (Public Finance Management Act, 2012); Employment Policy and Strategy for Kenya.
Sessional Paper no. 4 of 2013; National Employment Authority Act of 2016; and the United Nations
World Program of Action (1995); Basic Education Act of 2012, Revised 2016; and other national
and international protocols and treaties.
The manifesto comes at a time when Kenya is experiencing a monumental time in its elective
politics. A time when deferred dreams are at the brink of being re-livened. Dashed hopes of millions
of Kenyans are being re-assured of being re-activated and eventually actualized. A time when the
word “better” is regaining its position in many Kenyan’s vocabularies, and the word
“Transformation and Change” is being drawn high to Kenyan’s lips and hipes. The Manifesto comes

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at a time when Kenyans are now more anxiously conscious to see each and every word of their
leader tracked to be counted for. The Kenyan Youth are not willing any more to be leaders of
tomorrow, but to cut their space and occupy it today. The youth are more literate, adequately
informed and appropriately prepared to take the bull by the horn and therefore demand the full
implementation of the existing youth development policies and programs. Their time has come.
Hence this manifesto.
It is with these aspirations in mind and the realization of the role in propelling Kenya’s pursuit of
its development goals that Hanns Seidel Stiftung Supported the Youth of Kenya under the auspices
of the Kenya Youth Senate to come up with this manifesto, of which any succeeding government is
challenged to adopt and implement for the wider benefit of the Kenyan Youth.
It is therefore the pleasure of the youth of Kenya to invite the 5Th
Government of the Republic of
Kenya, regardless of which presidential candidate wins, to support the robust implementation of the
Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022-2027).
………………………………………. ………………………………………
Daniel Seilberling, Country Director, HSF Sankale Ole Keis, Director General, KYS

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ACCRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS
AGPO Access to Government Procurement Opportunities
ANC Amani National Congress
AU African Union
BBI Building Bridges Initiative
CBC Competency Based Curriculum
CBET Competency Based Education and Training Curriculum
CBOs Community Based Organizations
CSOs Civil Society Organizations
Dr. Doctor
EPZ Export Processing Zone
FGM Female Genital Mutilation
FPE Free Primary Education
FSE Free Secondary Education
GBV Gender Based Violence
H.E. His Excellency
HIV/AIDS Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficient Syndrome
Hon. Honorable
HSF Hanns Seiddel Foundation
ICT Information Communication Technology
IEBC Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission
IEC Informative Education and Communication Materials
KANU Kenya African National Union
KIPI Kenya Industrial Property Institute
KYDP Kenya Youth Development Policy
KYS Kenya Youth Senate
NAAFs National Affirmative Action Funds
NCDs Non Communicable Diseases

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NCIC National Cohesion and Integral Commission
NGOs Non-Governmental Organizations
NYC National Youth Council
PBO Act Public Benefit Organization Act
PFMA Public Finance Management Act
PhD (WIP) Doctor of Philosophy (Work in Progress)
PWDs Persons with Disabilities
Rt. Right
SDGs Sustainable Development Goals
SES Special Economic Zone
SME Small and Medium Enterprises
STEM Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics
TTIs Technical Training Institutions
UDA United Democratic Alliance
UN United Nations
UNSCR United Nations Security Council Resolutions
VTCs Vocational Training Centers
YPS Youth Peace and Security

11. SECTION 1
THE PURPOSE STATEMENT OF THE KENYA YOUTH MANIFESTO
I) The Youth Manifesto is great and highly desirable engagement tool between the leadership
in the public sector and the youth population. This current youth manifesto is a product of
an elaborate deliberative participatory process involving young people aged between 18 and
35 years (a cohort that represents 57 percent of the electorate in Kenya).
II) The Youth Manifesto seeks to enable the leadership of Kenya and our development partners
to recognize, address and respond to youth as a distinct but heterogeneous population group,
with particular needs and capacities which stem from their formative age, and which when
properly addressed through a multi-sectoral and multi-level approach, could result into
equitable and sustainable development in Kenya.
III) The Manifesto further seeks to build the capabilities and expand the choices of the youth by
enhancing their access to and participation in all dimensions of development and social
interactions in a nurturing and supportive environment. The choices that the manifesto seeks
to mainstream and scale up for the benefit of the youth include: Agriculture and Food
Security; Culture and Sports; Research, Innovation and Development; Environment and
Natural Resources; Gender, Community Development and Civil Society Strengthening;
Health; Industrialization and SMEs Development; Peace and Security; Investment
Promotion and Private Sector Development; Youth inclusion and participation in leadership
and governance; and trade and trade facilitation.
IV) It is also envisaged that the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027) shall catalyze investment
in youth by both the public and private sector agencies so that the youth are consistently able
to access and utilize desirable resources, information and opportunities to realize their full
potential, and so improve the public support available to youth from ad-hoc or last-minute
to consistent and mainstreamed approach to youth economic and social empowerment.
V) It also hoped that through this manifesto, Government and Private Sector will promote
partnerships, cooperation and the strengthening of institutional capacity that contribute to

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more solid investments in the youth and pro-youth development programs and projects; thus
include young people and their representative associations/organizations at all levels of
decision-making, policy formulation, budget making process and performance measurement
and evaluation stages both at sub-national and national level. This approach will create a
bare minimum standard for ensuring and guaranteeing effective youth mainstreaming in
development planning and execution in Kenya.

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SECTION 2
POLICY & LEGISLATION FRAMEWORK GUIDING MANIFESTO PREPARATION
VI) The Kenya Youth Manifesto is an outcome of a broad based participatory consultative
process, designed to put into action and scale up youth empowerment interventions already
designed and put in place by the successive Governments of Kenya. It will also scale up the
youths’ value contribution to nation building through re-assessment of all existing policies
and programs besides offering workable proposals to help fast track the implementation of
pro-youth policies, programs, projects and pieces of legislation. To this end, the current
youth manifesto is aligned to:
(a) African Youth Charter (2006)
(b) Youth Programmes in the Big Four Agenda of Government (2018-2022),
(c) Kenya Vision 2030 and its Medium Term Plans, the Constitution (2010)
(d) The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (2030);
(e) The Kenya Youth Development Policy (KYDP) 2018
(f) National Youth Service (NYS) Act (2018)
(g) Access to Government Procurement Opportunities (AGPO)
(h) Medium and Small Enterprise Act 2012
(i) Technical and Vocational Education and Training Act of 2013
(j) Uwezo Fund (Public Finance Management Act 2014)
(k) Public Procurement and Asset Disposal Act of 2015
(l) Employment Policy and Strategy for Kenya Sessional Paper No. 4 of 2013
(m)National Government Affirmative Action Fund (Public Finance Management Act 2012
(n) National Employment Authority Act, 2016
VII) Besides the above pieces of national policies and legislations, the Kenya Youth Manifesto
(2022 – 2027) derives its motivation from the United Nations Article 12. This Article is the
feeder to the youth framework both globally and in the local texts that addresses issues on
human rights, youth voice, youth participation, inclusion and representation. It is currently
under implementation and anchored under the United Nations World Program of Action
1995.

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SECTION 3
KENYA YOUTH MANIFESTO DEVELOPMENT ACTORS AND DELIBERATIONS
VIII) The project was sponsored by Hanns Seidel Foundation and brought together youth leaders
and aspirants from different organizations and political parties including: Youth Senate
Kenya, Chama cha Kazi, Centafrique Consulting, United Democratic Alliance (UDA),
Wiper Party, Amani National Congress (ANC), Silver Lining Kenya, Kenya African
National Union (KANU), Youth Alive Kenya, Kenya Agribusiness Alliance, Jubilee
Party/KPYC among other actors.
IX) During their deliberations as was guided by specific focal questions, the following issues
were highlighted and that eventually guided the formulation of this manifesto: -
(1) Despite the fact that youth form majority of the population in Kenya, why do you
think they have continuously been left out in terms of benefits from government
priorities?
 Lack of unity of purpose and vision.
 Lack of implementation of existing youth policies.
 Lack of political goodwill from leaders.
 Failure to have long-term perspective among youth hence often downplayed.
 Lack of social and financial support for political campaigns.
 Divisiveness along with tribal and political affiliations.
 Self-centeredness among youth leaders, loss of focus once elected to power.
 Lack of motivation to consistently fight for National Youth Agenda (because they
do not have clear objectives/goals/vision).
 Lack of youths at decision-making levels, especially the political level.
 Inadequate leadership skills. Leadership should be introduced as part of the
curriculum from an early age.
1. What are the common short-term and long-term ideologies and visions that would
favor the youth in general /beyond partisan affiliations?

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Short term
 Use of social media by youth to popularize political parties
 Lobby for employment opportunities that suites their skills.
 Develop laws that compel political parties to provide a waiver that allows youth to get a
free nomination Youth involvement in party secretariat and coalition formation.
 Political parties to have a certain percentage of youth representation, including
marginalized communities to meet the threshold of political nomination at the National &
County level.
 Government to have a policy lobbying council of elders to be youth-inclusive.
Long term
 Government to provide resources to the youth into Agribusiness hence creating economic
opportunities as well as investing in technology to enhance agribusiness value chain.
 Lobby for special youth kitty for youth to pursue entrepreneurial opportunities and give
youth tax holidays.
 Government to expand youth funding, develop youth-friendly regulations, and offer
capacity-building opportunities for youths to increase entrepreneurship knowledge.
 Youth to have a National Youth Day with incorporated activities on the National and
County level.
 Compel the president-elect to have a certain number of cabinet positions allocated to youth.
 Negotiate for youth running mates in the national government and also in the county
governments.
 Affirmative seat for the youth. Through a stand-alone ministry to tackle diverse youth
issues.
 Advocate for youth inclusion in committees’ development and implementation of policies
that directly and indirectly affect them.
 Mobilize and oversight mobilization of youth policies.
 Political parties completely waive nomination fees for the youth to create a level playing
field for aspiring youth leaders.
 Have a negotiated democracy whereby the top 3 seats (governor, senator, women
representative) will be youth-represented.

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 Having youths in every county committee to FastTrack deliverables
2. What are the effective funding mechanisms for youth-friendly interventions?
 Government should give subsidies and incentives for startups.
 Strengthen the presidential award scheme and be listed as a youth empowerment scheme.
 Crowd-funding for youth in order to get resources for campaigns.
 Peer-to-peer fundraising.
 Mapping out and verifying suitable youth CSOs and YSOs
 Gender-responsive budget both at national and county with a focus on initiatives that target
young women.
 Providing zero-interest loans to SMEs
 Setting up business incubation centers for the youth.
3. Do you feel included in the current political space?
No/Yes
No
 The youths are being used as a voting block but their issues are not addressed.
 Underrepresentation
 They are not connected with the big boss.
 Male chauvinism in political parties
 Youth feel misunderstood on issues that affect them such as unemployment, lack of
matching skills
Yes
 Youths are included as they are in a position to participate in decision-making.
 Parties have provided employment to a number of youths
 Through the established NYC, few nominations and appointments, recommendations of
BBI.
4. What Youth Agenda (social, cultural, political, and economic) do you want to see
implemented by the 5th government?

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Social
 Government should develop devolved programs both at the county and ward level that
addresses issues such as drug abuse, child marriage, and mental health awareness.
 Implementation of PBO Act 2013 to strengthening civil societies
 Allocate resources from the budget to key youth-affiliated institutions and departments
 Amendments of laws governing the criminal justice system in Kenya in order to reduce
punitive laws that infringes the rights of young people.
Political
 Ensure maximum engagement and representation of young people in decision-making
processes at the county and national level
 Creation of a stand-alone youth ministry
 Provide lenience during nominations, especially for youth positions.
 Youth positions should be given to young people at all levels without being downplayed.
Cultural
 Development and implementation of regional-specific policies addressing negative social-
cultural norms and practices.
 Address cultural barriers affecting leadership, especially with the pastoralist’s
communities. Government should develop acts and policies for guided democracies to
address political issues through IEBC/NCIC
Economic
 Access to affordable MSMEs for young people in Kenya. Review policies around youth
funds to cater to capital-intensive fintech start-ups.
 Reduction of taxes/levies/registration fees for start-up and youth affiliated businesses.
 Digitize access to information on available opportunities by MDAs/counties i.e. AGPO
5. What are the possible quick wins to engage with the government to engage with
electoral and governance processes and institutions?
 Youth should be considered first with upcoming IEBC Jobs.

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 The incoming government should consider implementing some parts of the youth
manifesto during the first (100 days)
 Create a simplified system that will enable youth to get information in regard to
nominations.
6. How can youth engage institutions and leaders for long-term youth development?
 Through a stand-alone youth ministry to tackle youth issues
 Mobilize and oversight implementation of youth policies
 Advocate for inclusion of young people in committee’s development and implementation
of policies that directly and indirectly affects them.

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SECTION 4
THEMATIC AREAS FOR ENHANCING YOUTH DEVELOPMENT AND
EMPOWERMENT IN KENYA
X) Upon identification of the issues affecting youth development and empowerment in Kenya,
and upon identifying gaps that exist in the implementation of existing youth-focused
development priorities in Kenya, the Kenya Youth Senate with support from Hanns Seidel
Foundation has now prioritized the following issues for consideration by the incoming 5th
Government of the Republic of Kenya: -
4.1. Theme No. 1: Youth, Agriculture and Food Security
XI) Agriculture is the mainstay of the Kenyan economy and a key livelihood pillar for most of
the youth while food and nutrition security is one of the pillars of the Big Four Agenda of
the Government. The sector accounts for about 40 per cent of Kenya’s total exports and
provides both formal and informal employment in urban and rural areas. The sector
comprises six subsectors, namely: Industrial crops, food crops, horticulture, livestock, blue
economy and fisheries and forestry.
XII) Two main issues drive the quest for the 5th Government of the Republic of Kenya to rethink
its agriculture and food security policies and interventions. First, Kenya has a young
population - approximately seventy percent (70%) of her people are below 24 years of age.
The issue here is, could the engagement of the 10 million plus youth of productive age in
agriculture be the much needed panacea to food insecurity and joblessness in Kenya?
Secondly, can we make the allure of agribusiness and agro-value chain development override
the demand for white collar jobs among Kenya’s youth, hence create the much needed job
opportunities for the youth in Kenya?
XIII) Against the backdrop of devolution where much of agricultural development functions were
devolved to county governments, how do we incentivize young people to engage in farming,
agribusiness, and agro-value chain development and hence create a reverse migration pattern
to rural areas instead of urban centers in search of “green pastures”?

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XIV) The Kenya Youth Manifesto postulates the following proposals to address the challenges the
drift youth away from agriculture. These includes the following: -
1. Providing targeted technical, professional, legal and business advice to youth producer
enterprises and first mile agri-businesses.
2. Facilitating access to more affordable high-quality inputs to incentivize the adoption of
productivity improving technologies.
3. Supporting youth enterprises to access low-interest rates loans to enable them to invest in
their farm business models.
4. Promote youth participation in agriculture as a livelihood value addition of agricultural
outputs and put in place processes that motivate youth to participate in agribusiness;
5. Remold the negative perceptions on agriculture among the youth; promote agriculture,
livestock and blue economy skills development, innovation, information sharing and
access to finance;
6. Support youth to access land for agri-business and agricultural adoption to climate change;
7. Strengthen youth’s agribusinesses through enhanced coordination, monitoring and
evaluation of product development and supply chains in agribusiness activities;
8. Rebranding agriculture as the new unexplored frontier for growth and development in
business and employment opportunities;
9. Promote specialization by re-directing and training youth to focus either on sections of the
value chain activities such as production, processing, branding, packaging, marketing and
or sales;
10. Develop innovative financial packages that provide incentives for youth entrepreneurs in
the agriculture sector;
11. Encourage youth to invest in Blue economy activities including aquaculture, silviculture,
floriculture etc.;
12. Invest in value addition through processing, branding, quality, shelf life improvements;
13. Invest in irrigation and water harvesting technologies to facilitate full time engagement of
the youth and shorten waiting time for economic returns on their investments;
14. Digitize agricultural production and marketing information into web-based resources;
15. Invest in emerging livestock and agricultural technologies;

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16. Profile successful youth role models in agro–business who can mentor other upcoming
youth;
17. Review land tenure and use systems to provide adequate security and access to land to
encourage youth to invest in land improvements, development and productivity, minimize
conflicts and encourage lease arrangements for private and corporate investment for
irrigation development; and;
18. Promote the participation of the youth in modern agriculture as a viable career opportunity
for the youth and as an economic and business option.
19. Increase access to appropriate agricultural education and training; and ensure that youth in
diverse agro-ecological zones are provided with training and skills necessary for living and
working productively in their respective areas. In addition, provide career guidance to
youth at an early age to inform them on job prospects in agriculture including the blue
economy;
20. Increase investment in rural farm and non-farm activities and social and economic
infrastructure to offer youth attractive job prospects and living conditions; and transmit a
positive social and economic image and status of rural areas through education, the media,
and other means of communication;
21. Promote access to domestic and global market linkages, mechanization, financial inclusion
including review and development financing models and products targeting youth
enterprises;
22. Support youth’s access and ownership of land for agri-business as well as access to
innovative agricultural technologies, including climate change adaptation;
23. Strengthen youth’s agribusinesses through enhanced coordination, monitoring and
evaluation of product development and supply chains in agribusiness activities;
24. Promote innovation and incubation of agricultural technologies, youth access to credit for
agricultural development; and,
25. Provide youth with extension services to support growth and development of enterprises.

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4.2. Theme No. 2: Youth, Culture and Sports
XV) The Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2022) will seek to work with the 5th Government of
the Republic of Kenya, Stakeholders, National Culture and Sports bodies, development
partners and the general public to pursue the full implementation of the following proposals
aimed at encouraging and motivating the youth to be innovative in developing their
respective cultures and exploiting the huge potential in sports, games and athletics: -
i.) Ensure that the Government develops adequate and appropriate sports, games and
athletics infrastructure in each county while the county governments cascades the same
to each sub-county
ii.) Develop and implement youth talent identification and nurturing policy and Programmes
aimed at identifying and developing youth sports, games and athletics talents early
enough and ensuring they get adequate support to ensure that none of these talents are
lost mid-way;
iii.) Strengthen and support the full implementation of the reward system for participation in
sports, games and athletics at national and international levels and ensure the full
implementation of the National Sports Policy;
iv.) Encourage private sector participation in the promotion of culture, arts and sports sectors
for youth through sponsorships and corporate social responsibility Programmes;
v.) Identify and promote local and regional recreational opportunities such as outdoor
activities, sports and opportunities for enhancing creativity;
vi.) Strengthen and promote co-curricular activities in educational institutions with adequate
budgetary allocations as a means to also promote talent development and promotion
among youth in school;
vii.) Institutionalize National Culture Days and use culture as a tourist event to earn Kenya
Foreign Exchange
viii.)Set up a structure to register all the innovations made by the youth and assist the youth
with space and facilities to develop innovations in culture and sports; and,
ix.) Establish youth talent academies across the country and reengineer the existing ones;
x.) Create a database on talented youth and the related industry players to facilitate
networking and referral;

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xi.) Encourage and support volunteerism in sports and co-curricular activities across all
counties;
xii.) Scale up and fully operationalize creative talent hubs and Youth Empowerment Centers
countrywide;
xiii.)Sensitize youth on the value of talents, talent development and commercialization;
xiv.) Establish a comprehensive talent scouting system including through talent shows in all
counties for continuous identification of talent identification and development.
4.3. Theme No. 3: Youth, Research, Innovation and Development
XVI) The youth of Kenya have over the time proved to be very innovative, resilient in times of
national challenges and creative in providing much needed solutions to national challenges.
Despite these characteristic of our youth, only unique to the Kenyan youth, their impacts are
still quite low. To turn around this trend, the Kenya Youth Manifesto proposes the following
policy action points to the 5th Government of the Republic of Kenya for implementation
and or scale-up: -
i.) Increase research funding to the Kenyan Colleges and Universities to promote solution-
based research and innovation;
ii.) Create special fund for publications and patenting of research and innovations from our
Kenyan Colleges and Universities;
iii.) Sponsor young researchers with funds and technical assistance grants to enable them pursue
to logical end their respective research interests.
iv.) Create sectoral database of research findings for reference and trials of research findings
v.) Support the establishment of innovation hubs at the national and county levels to facilitate
identification, incubation and acceleration of youth innovations;
vi.) Enhance the commercialization of talent, patenting and intellectual property rights for youth-
generated knowledge, innovation and other research products
vii.) Enhance the capacity of teachers at school and post- school levels of education and training
to identify learners with research and innovation talents and refer them to the talent
identification centers for incubation at an early age.
viii.) Strengthen the capacity of the Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI) to register and
protect innovations developed by the youth. Government should also ensure adequate

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funding is allocated to KIPI to support its outreach and publicity Programmes as well as
funding youth intending to register their research documents and products with KIPI;
ix.) Enhance the implementation of the Copyright Act to create awareness on copyright and
enhance the capacity of the youth to value and embrace the use of intellectual property rights;
x.) Developing mechanism for copyright and patenting for youth innovations and talents; and,
xi.) Encourage and facilitate access to entrepreneurial activities through AGPO by young
innovators and researchers to enable them translate their innovations and research findings
into viable and multipliable commercial ventures.
4.4. Theme No. 4: Youth, Environment and Nature Conservation
XVII) The Constitution of Kenya, 2010 provides for the right to a clean and healthy
environment which includes the protection of the environment for the benefit of present and
future generations either through legislation or other measures. Kenya has become prone to
climate change effects and disasters such as floods, droughts and other shocks that require
strategic interventions by the youth in every stage including prevention, management or
recovery.
XVIII) To engage the youth in environment and nature conservation, the Kenya Youth
Manifesto proposes to the 5th Government to take up visible leadership in creating
partnerships and networks, including the youth, to scale up and strengthen and scale up
ongoing environmental management Programmes in the country. Some of the proposed
measures include: -
i) Engage children and youth living in streets in environmental management activities as
groups. Role model interventions such as “One Child One Tree Project” in Homa Bay
County could be supported by the State and replicated in other counties;
ii) Promote mechanisms that support youth engagement in the development, protection,
conservation of the natural resources and environment while engaging in eco-
entrepreneurship and green jobs that earns them a decent living within their immediate
environments;

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iii) Sensitize youth at various levels to participate in management, protection and
conservation of the environment. This will include youth in various levels of
institutions of learning, out of school youth and at the workplace. Operationalizing
environmental clubs in all institutions will also serve to achieve this goal. The youth
will also be empowered to play an active role as environmental ambassadors across the
country;
iv) Build capacity of youth on green processes and technology, waste management and
general environmental conservation and management. This will involve training and
sensitization of youth both at the individual and group levels on ways of collecting and
managing waste to employ technologies to convert waste for useful gain for
employment and wealth creation. It will also involve building their capacity to take
advantage of the blue economy as a way of livelihood as they conserve the
environment;
v) Support high potential value chains in green energy, waste management and alternative
prudent natural resources utilization. This measure will entail putting in place
mechanisms to promote development and investment in alternative forms of energy
such as solar and wind to minimize over-reliance on the natural environment as a source
of energy; and,
i) Enhance capacity building for the youth on disaster management to participate in
awareness creation, prevention, management and recovery. The government will put
in place measures to sensitize youth on potential disasters due to poor or lack of proper
environmental management. With this kind of awareness, the youth will be better
informed to take cautionary and preventive measures to avert environmental
degradation.

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4.5. Theme No. 5: Youth, Education, Science and Technology
XIX) Kenya as with many other developing countries South of Sahara is experiencing a youth
bulge. Youth population dividend can be harnessed through provision of provision of
relevant skills, knowledge, competencies and attitudes, which are consistent and aligned
with job market and industry requirements.
XX) The ICT skills gap among youth is a primary barrier to youth employment in the digital
economy.9 Providing Competency Based Education and Training (CBET) as well as
imparting life and communication skills can achieve this. Enhanced ICT education will
improve the link between theoretical education and workplace training since there is a weak
link between education and training on one hand and needs of labor market and industry
on the other, creating huge skills gaps in the labor and industry market. This makes it
difficult to fully integrate youth into the labor market.
XXI) In addition, the youth lack apprenticeship and incubation programme hence have limited
knowledge of actualizing what they learn in training institutions and demands of the
industry.
XXII) To address some of these challenges, the Kenya Youth Manifesto proposes the following
to the 5th Government of the Republic of Kenya: -
(a) Develop and implement initiatives that utilize both formal and non-formal education,
training and skills development channels and mutually reinforce and enhance youth
educational progress and attainment.
(b) Strengthen and scale up education, training, skills development and
internship/apprenticeship programme by providing ICT integrated education,
increasing investment of Technical Training Institutes and Vocational and Craft
Training Centers to improve cooperation between government, education institutions
and enterprises;
(c) Ensure youth of school going age have access to quality education and training at all
levels;

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(d) Institutionalize and strengthen apprenticeship and internship Programmes at all levels
of government and in the private sector.
(e) Create opportunities for youth to earn decent and sustainable livelihoods
(f) Address youth unemployment, underemployment and Inactivity through such
measures as: -
1. Accelerate and sustain inclusive macroeconomic and social policies that create
decent jobs;
2. Expand investment in productive sectors, key among them agriculture,
manufacturing, tourism, blue economy among others for enhanced job creation;
3. Strengthen public finance management systems at national and county levels to
ensure public resources are prudently managed and utilized for improved service
delivery; improving business environment and creation of employment
opportunities;
4. Address the challenge of gambling and sports betting by initiating Programmes
and activities that encourage sustainable engagements and positive means of
livelihoods;
5. Support youth entry into both public and private sector employment through
strengthening linkage between education and training; and labor market; and
6. Address challenges youth face when searching for a job through investment in
jobs search infrastructure including strengthening the Kenya Labor Market
Information System up to county level and enhancing employment services across
all counties.
7. Supporting youth development, health, nutrition and wellbeing in order for the
government to reap the benefits of Free Primary Education (FPE) and Free
Secondary Education (FSE);
8. Eradicating drugs and substance abuse among youth;
9. Investing in education, training and skills development as a priority with
government funding Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics (STEM)
schools as well as channeling more funds to TTIs and VTCs;
10. Institutionalizing and strengthening apprenticeship and internship programmes;
11. Addressing youth unemployment, underemployment and inactivity;

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12. Building capacity of the youth to fully integrate them into the Country’s
technological transformation;
13. Ensuring sustainable financing of youth programmes, that is, Ajira Digital Clubs
which help to create awareness on the existence of online work and prepare the
youth for the global future work and business environment;
14. Transforming agriculture right from curriculum design at the basic education level
to tertiary level to make it attractive to youth;
15. Promoting entrepreneurs, training, mentorship, internships, attachments, business
incubations and partnerships;
16. Strengthening frameworks for labour export by ensuring that the youth has the
right skills-sets for the labour market and industry;
17. Supporting labour management information systems;
4.6. Theme No. 6: Youth, Gender, Community Development & Civil Society Strengthening
XXIII) The Kenya Youth Manifesto implores upon the 5th Government of Kenya to undertake to
closely co-operate with the Private Sector, Development Partners, County Governments
and Religious Organizations to: -
i.) Create employment opportunities, implement programs and projects aimed at alleviating
poverty and improving the working conditions for the youth of Kenya;
ii.) Increase funding and technical assistance to technical training institutes, vocational
training centers, craft training centers and promote the eradication of adult illiteracy in the
Community; and
iii.)Develop and adopt a common approach towards the disadvantaged and marginalized
groups, including children, the youth, the elderly and persons with disabilities through
rehabilitation and provision of, among others, foster homes, nyumba ya wazee, health care,
education and training.
iv.)Review all existing national youth, disability, community development and gender policies
and implementation frameworks with a view to aligning them with the prevailing political
and constitutional dispensation. Particular focus should be on how to align the policies with
the current ruling party’s manifesto and ensuing legal frameworks as shall be enacted from
time to time to actuate the development focus of the ruling party.

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v.) Mainstream youth and gender issues and anticipated performance outputs into public
policies, budgets and annual action plans in ministries’, state departments and semi-
autonomous agencies’ performance contracting and contracts
vi.)Ensure all Affirmative Action Funds are aligned to youth development needs as are
identified and prioritized from their respective regions. These funds includes the following:
- Women Enterprise Fund, UWEZO Fund, National Government Affirmative Action Fund
(NGAAF), Youth Enterprise Fund, Ajira Kenya, Access to Government Procurement
Opportunities (AGPO), National Youth Service (NYS) Transformation Programme, Youth
Enterprise Development Fund, The Kenya Youth Employment and Opportunities
Programme, Youth Empowerment Centers, National Safety Net Programme, and other
bilateral and multilateral grants acquired through government interventions for the benefit
of the youth, women, PWDs and other vulnerable members of the society.
vii.) Other interventions to be scaled up and sustained include the following: -
a) Prevention and Response to Gender Based Violence
b) Eradication of Female Genital Mutilation
c) Sanitary Towels Programme targeting schools, children’s homes and indisposed
families and households.
d) Gender mainstreaming through the following channels:
1. Integration of gender responsive budgeting into the public finance
management reforms;
2. Mainstreaming United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR)
1325 into national development planning, budgeting and programming with
youth perspective into it;
3. Implementation of the ‘not more than two thirds gender rule at all levels of
governance;
4. Implementation of the National Strategy for Supporting Increased
participation of youth in elective politics, public service and private sector
development and leadership positions; and
5. Strengthening the production and use of gender disaggregated statistics as
well as carrying out timely use of baseline surveys and post program
evaluations that will measure progression towards realization youth agenda

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for Kenya in the aspect of Gender, Community Development & Civil
Society Strengthening.
e) In order to reactive, rejuvenate and strengthen youth-led CBOs and NGOs, the
government, stakeholders and development partners should work towards building
the capacity of selected role model CBOs and associations in each county to
engage in people-centered and issue-based advocacy from a rights-based
perspective regarding specific broad issues of their choice that require change and
government interventions;
f) To facilitate a process of bringing together the selected CBOs into a
network for presenting a collective voice and for mutual support, the government
should work in collaboration with development partners to development thematic
action groups of CBOs and NGOs in every locality such that support is targeted
and channeled through these thematic action groups; and
g) To facilitate a process of internal capacity strengthening for the selected CBOs and
NGOs to enable them deliver more effectively and efficiently on their
work, particularly regarding their engagement with local power structures through
the creation of Community Actors Forums and Round Tables..
4.7. Theme No. 7: Youth and Health
XXIV) Health is a fundamental and cross cutting issue which has important bearing on youth’s
wellbeing and capacity to participate in education, skills development, poverty
eradication; and national economic, political and social processes and generally to be
able to lead a meaningful and productive life.
XXV) Apart from preventable and communicable diseases such as sexually transmitted
diseases, spread of HIV and AIDS, new challenges like COVID-19, malnutrition, non-
communicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, cancer and such like,
reproductive health and drug abuse have become emerging issues of major concern
affecting youth across the country, causing loss of lives and livelihoods in equal
measure.

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XXVI) Mental health is increasingly becoming a common problem among the youth.
Depression, anxiety, propensity to commit suicide, eating disorders, psychosis, drug use
and substance abuse contribute to youth mental health problems. Mental health includes
capacity to subdue stress, reduce risks of illness and nurture positive interactions.
XXVII) There is a growing health problem among youth who drop out of school / colleges /
universities. This category of youth are mostly unemployed, have no adult supervision,
have poor level of welfare, and are vulnerable to drug use and substance abuse. Young
females are particularly vulnerable to high-risk sexual behavior, such as transactional
sex, prostitution, rape, female genital mutilation (FGM), sexual abuse and sexual
exploitation. They are exposed to violence, exploitation, and are often in conflict with
the law and law enforcement agencies. At present, there are limited programs aimed at
addressing the needs of these groups of the youth with diverse health care and health
support needs.
XXVIII) Consequently, the youth of Kenya implores upon the 5th Government of Kenya to: -
(a) Develop and implement interventions and initiatives aimed at improving physical,
psychological and emotional health and well-being of the youth while mitigating any
negative practices that may be injurious to the wholesome health of the youth such as
poor nutrition, joblessness, poverty, hunger and deprivation, internal conflicts,
negative ethnicity, FGM and drug use and substance abuse.
(b) Support and implement comprehensive and inclusive mental health care and support
Programmes including emotional, physical, social, environmental, spiritual wellness
to facilitate achievement of full youth potential. This intervention should focus on
youth in drugs and substance abuse, youth in schools and tertiary education centers,
youth in prisons, youth recently released from prisons, youth in Jua Kali Sector
including the Boda Boda Sector, youth in the fishing industry, youth in the matatu
sector and youth disciplined forces.
(c) The government in collaboration with other stakeholders and development partners to
promote establishment and operationalization of youth-friendly health services at all
levels of the health system (Level 1 – 6). These will encompass the following: -

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i.) promote, encourage and support youth campaigns aimed at encouraging a change
in sexual behavior and discouraging teenage and early pregnancies, drug and
substance abuse, and negative peer influence;
ii.) Promote and establish home and community-based welfare Programmes to help
youth orphaned by HIV/AIDS or youth undergoing family breakdowns and job
losses;
iii.)Establish and develop youth friendly guidance and counselling units in learning
institutions, prisons, hospitals, Matatu SACCOs, Fishing Sector, Community youth
centers, Community Libraries and health facilities;
iv.)Establish affordable rehabilitation centers in each county to help youth addicted to
drugs and substances of abuse; and encourage parents to take a lead role in teaching
and counselling of their children on responsible sexual behavior; and
v.) Build the capacity of peer educators and peer counselors on youth seeking services
(d) Develop mechanisms and structures to support transformative leadership, mentorship,
participation and representation of the youth at all levels of leadership and governance. The
underlying assumption here is that effective participation of the youth in leadership and
governance is necessary for the realization of the National Development Goals. In addition,
the Government in partnership with its key stakeholders and development partners have an
obligation to provide a supportive environment where youth leadership abilities can be
identified, nurtured, ideals of volunteerism and community service upheld and national
values entrenched among the youth as we unite to pursue our national development
aspirations.
(e) In order to enhance youth participation in health governance and management, the youth
of Kenya calls upon the government of Kenya and other stakeholders to create mechanisms
and systems that promote effective and inclusive engagement of youth in development and
implementation of health Programmes at all levels including sub-county, county, national,
regional and international levels in line with Article 55 of Kenya’s Constitution (2010) and
UN Article 12.
(f) Promote youth’s mental, emotional, psychosocial and spiritual health through engaging in
creative social and economic activities at grassroots level;

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(g) Provide tailor made interventions for the youth to enable them develop protective
initiatives and eliminate mental health risks;
(h) Facilitate access to counselling and rehabilitation services for youth at risk of mental
illness;
(i) Provide psychosocial interventions and initiatives to address issues of social disorder,
substance abuse, family/relationships problems, depression and anxiety; and,
(j) Integrate mental health and counselling across all youth empowerment Programme.
(k) Develop and implement measures to improve nutrition, physical and mental health and
well-being of the youth while mitigating non-communicable diseases (NCDs)
(l) Improve the technical and institutional capacity of youth organizations and community-
based organizations (CBOs) to enable them effectively advocate and promote health
programs for youth;
(m)Promote partnerships between the government, civil society organizations (CSOs) and the
private sector to invest in youth friendly health facilities; and,
(n) Develop, integrate and create awareness on information, education and communication
(IEC) materials on youth health in training and empowerment platforms.
4.8. Theme No. 8: Youth, Industrialization and SME Development
XXIX) Industrialization and SME development is a critical engine for spurring national
economic growth and development, hence the realization of the national development
goals as anchored in the Kenya Vision 2030 and the Kenya’s Big Four Agenda for
National Development. In order, therefore to address youth unemployment,
underemployment and or misemployment, the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022-2027)
proposes the following policy, program and project interventions: -
(a) Mainstreaming Entrepreneurial Culture among the youth as a sure route out of
joblessness and poverty. The Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027) avers that the
following measures could be instrumental in ensuring that Kenya became an
enterprising nation:
1) Mainstream and entrench Entrepreneurship lesson in the Competency Based
Curriculum (CBC) and Competency Based Education and Training Curriculum
(CBET) and promote its uptake by learners across all levels of learning in
Kenya as core subject/unit.

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2) Government to increase funding allocations and technical assistance grants-in-
aid to CBC and CBET Learning Institutions to ensure availability of and access
to required teaching-learning-practical aids necessary for ensuring effective
transfer of entrepreneurial knowledge, skills and information to learner;
3) Ensure adequacy of appropriately skilled and experienced teaching, training
and field support staff at all levels of teaching, learning industrial and business
incubation centers including mainstreaming of mandatory internship and
industrial Programmes for youth from various TTIs and VTCs;
4) Ensure that all National Affirmative Action Funds (NAAFs) are adequately
capitated, structurally engineered to address the unique needs of youth and
other vulnerable groups in so far as business conceptualization, business
planning and execution or start-up is concerned. Access to these funds should
highly be equitable, meritocratic and judicious enough to encourage youth trust
and confidence in them.
5) The county and national government to partner and collaborate in the
establishment and development of market and research infrastructure and
systems aimed at expanding and or scaling up identification, uptake and
exploitation of emerging and trendy entrepreneurship opportunities favorable
to the youth and women, especially those in the bottom of the pyramid.
6) Promote best lessons sharing, cross-learning and knowledge sharing to enrich
the experiences of the youth and women entrepreneurs.
7) Establish a database of National Entrepreneurship Inspirational and
Motivational Speakers for purposes of routinely speaking to the youth and
women in business, industry and enterprise.
(b) Skills Development, Capacity Enhancement, Trade Support and Facilitation
of Start-Ups.
1. Develop and provide holistic, demand-driven, sector-specific and structured
capacity building programs for youth and women entrepreneurs, youth and
women in business and young innovators.
2. Promote entrepreneurship and trade skills and knowledge transfers
innovations’ roll-outs and scale up Programmes.

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3. Identify and promote linkages between learning institutions and research
institutions /organizations on the one hand, and research institutions and
industry/business sector on the other hand for sustained uptake and
implementation of research findings and innovations from research studies.
4. Create awareness on emerging and trending high economic value potential
entrepreneurship and micro-enterprise development opportunities including
industrial development opportunities at micro levels.
5. Mainstream the needs of the youth with special needs in industry and SME
development policies, programs and projects as a pre-requisite for funding and
technical assistance provision and support through NAAFs.
(c) Involving of youths and women in market identification, market entry
planning and market expansion and development Programmes. This will
help to address the challenges associated with brokers, middle men and cartels
in a market segment. The disenfranchised youth and women whose sweat and
toil often goes into the drains will overcome these challenges of brokers,
middlemen and cartels through: -
1. Installation of ICT Hubs in each and every Ward/Urban Centers to facilitate
access to real-time market intelligence information including prevailing market
price of different commodities in different retail markets, demand for specific
commodities both in domestic and international markets, and standardization
requirements by specific markets, both in country and internationally.
2. Prepare daily, weekly, monthly and bi-annual market intelligence information
targeted at products and goods produced by or traded in by the youth and
women and disseminate the same to them using different media of
communication.
3. Support young entrepreneurs to attain and comply with local and international
standards required in different markets for specific goods and products.
4. Support young entrepreneurs to implement international standardization
protocols and procedures and product certification requirements.
5. Promote value addition within specific local and international standardization
and certification requirements and procedures.

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6. Create digital platforms and digital hubs with high bandwidths to facilitate
international e-Commerce and trade.
7. Create and sustain start-up funding mechanisms that is purposefully intended
to support business/innovation conceptualization, business plan writing,
research and development in enterprise development, trade and
industrialization, business modelling and business facility set-up and
development as well as pre-launch activities.
4.9. Theme No. 9: Youth, Peace and Security
XXX) The United Nations Security Council (UNSCR) 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security
urged member states to provide youth with an enabling environment and structures to
implement violence prevention and conflict management activities including peace-
building efforts. The UNSCR 2419 recognized the role that the youth can play in conflict
early warning, conflict prevention and requested the UN Secretary General to submit
report on the implementation of both resolutions 2419 and 2250. These UNSCRs
reaffirmed the centrality of youth participation in peace and security efforts.
XXXI) Since the UNSCR 2250 (2015), 2419 (2018) and 2535 of 2020 on Youth Peace and
Security, a lot of country-level efforts have been development and to a varying extent
put into tangible actions, albeit at low pace than anticipated. The efforts are organized,
developed and implemented around 5 thematic areas as follows: - Participation,
Protection, Prevention, Partnerships, Disengagement and Reintegration.
XXXII) At Continental level, the Africa Union (AU)’s Continental Framework on Youth, Peace
and Security provides a clear framework for implementing, monitoring and evaluating
the above 5 pillars around with Youth Peace and Security (YPS) is organized, developed
and pursued.
XXXIII) In Kenya, efforts to integrate and operationalize the UNSCR 2250 (2015), 2419 (2018)
and 2535 (2020) still remains scanty and disjointed with only a mention of YPS in a few
Government Policy Documents such as Kenya National Youth Policy and Kenya Youth
Development Policy.

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XXXIV) To advance Kenya’s efforts to integrate and fully implement the YPS related UN
Resolutions and African Union’s Youth Peace and Security Framework of action, the
Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027) proposes the following policy, program and
project interventions: -
(a) Elimination of all forms of youth-centered criminal gangs, youth radicalization and
terrorism recruitment networks in Kenya and across its immediate borders;
(b) Scale up efforts to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor, especially within
high crime prone areas both in urban and rural areas.
(c) Step up efforts to deal with and eliminate drugs and substance abuse including drug
trafficking and peddling in Kenya and through Kenya’s drug trafficking and transit
routes.
(d) Engage more youth in paid internships, industrial coaching, and community
services.
(e) Develop structures at all levels for youth engagement in peace and security.
(f) Instill moral and values as envisaged in the National Principles and Values.
(g) Strengthen youth-friendly correctional services that entails appropriate
administration of de-radicalization, rehabilitation and reintegration/relapse
management programs.
(h) Aggressively support and encourage diverse youth initiatives at community levels.
(i) Provide better, suitable and more productive alternative livelihood opportunities
for the youth that takes into account the unique cultural, environmental, social,
geographic attributes of their backgrounds.
(j) Continuously carry out youth-to-youth peace and security dialogues, consultations,
lesson sharing, public lectures and debates, research and research dissemination
among other best [practices].
(k) Provide actionable and bankable frameworks for future engagement in youth peace
and security actions and efforts and use the same to mobilize resources to support
youth engagement in peace and security efforts across the country.
(l) Address all human rights violations affecting the youth and women in their efforts
to pursue peace and security in their immediate communities.

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(m)Provide an elaborate youth-centered peace and security efforts coordination,
collaboration and partnership structure both at the county and national government
levels and ensure the structure is as inclusive, culturally and socially sensitive
besides being visibly inclusive and community-oriented.
(n) Institutionalize the YPS Agenda by creating and operationalize Kenya National
YPS Council at National Level and County YPS Council at the County Level.
(o) Allocate adequate financial, human, technical and other requisite support to the
newly created National/County YPS Councils.
4.10. Theme No. 10: Youth, Investment Promotion and Private Sector Development
XXXV) To address the challenge of weak youth participation and involvement in investment
promotion and private sector development, the Kenya Youth Manifesto implores upon
the 5th Government of the Republic of Kenya to follow-up from previous efforts by the
3rd and 4th Government of the Republic of Kenya the following already existing policy
statements and translate them into implementable programs and development activities
for the benefit of the Kenyan youth: -
i.) Accelerate and sustain inclusive macroeconomic and social policies that create decent
jobs;
ii.) Expand investment in productive sectors, key among them agriculture, manufacturing,
tourism, blue economy among others for enhanced job creation;
iii.) Strengthen public finance management systems at national and county levels to ensure
public resources are prudently managed and utilized for improved service delivery;
improving business environment and creation of employment opportunities;
iv.) Address the challenge of gambling and sports betting by initiating Programmes and
activities that encourage sustainable engagements and positive means of livelihoods
such as linking youth innovators with Kenya Private Sector Alliance for purposes of
scale-up and roll-out of massive production of goods, products and services innovated
by the youth of Kenya;
v.) Support youth entry into both domestic and foreign markets through trade facilitation
and support by the state.

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vi.) Embrace result-based contracting in order to strengthen link between youth and public
sector tenders and contracts within the framework of Access to Government
Procurement Opportunities (AGPO);
vii.) Support development of business infrastructure including business incubation
programs and centers, cottage industries sites in every sub-county, expansion of
Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and Export Processing Zones (EPZ) into other
counties; and creating a special fund to support youth exporters.
viii.) Support business sub-contracting to youth-based enterprises;
ix.) Develop and institutionalize financial market access systems for the youth; and,
x.) Enhance access to financial support for youth entrepreneurship ventures and
enterprises.
4.11. Theme No. 11: Youth, Leadership and Governance
XXXVI) Effective participation of the youth in leadership and governance is necessary for the
realization of the National development goals as well as Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs). In addition, the incoming Government in collaboration and partnership with
key stakeholders and development partners should have an obligation to provide a
supportive environment where youth leadership abilities can be identified early enough,
purposively and strategically nurtured, ideals of volunteerism and community service
upheld and national values entrenched among the youth. This calls for the following
commitments: -
(d) Institutionalize periodic forums to receive views and strategies on youth matters
at both levels of governments and attended by all development actors and players;
(e) Develop a framework for identification of youth representatives in parliament
through the Political Parties;
(f) Strengthen the role of the National Youth Council towards registration of youth
groups and youth serving organizations;
(g) Promote youth exchange Programmes – locally and internationally;
(h) Enhance linkages with regional and international youth organizations for purposes
of enhancing exposure to opportunities

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4.12. Theme No. 12: Youth and Trade.
XXXVII) The Youth Economic Empowerment is closely linked and tied to the growth, success
and future of SMEs and global trade. The Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027) is
geared towards lobbying the Government to enable the youth to tap from huge
opportunities available through the Aid to Trade Programmes which:
(a) Improve access to Trade Financial Services for Youth Entrepreneurs and
Exporters
(b) Improve Financial Skills and Literacy for Trade Financing
(c) Promoting and supporting SMEs global competitiveness
(d) Supporting and building capacity of youth to find, secure and excel in gainful
employment in the trade sector.
(e) Developing youth skills for export-ready companies
(f) Forging effective national and international partnerships to foster and spur cross
border trade targeting youth-led companies.
(g) Promoting national awareness and consciousness on Trade and Trade Facilitation
Opportunities for the youth.
(h) Facilitating access to Trade Finance and Aid to Trade, both from Public Sector
and Development Partners.
(i) Linking youth –led companies and enterprises to appropriate businesses and trade
ecosystem and support mechanisms.
(j) Tailor support to address Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) and Sanitary and
Phytosanitary Standards (SPS) related barriers by making Trade Policies more
youth and young entrepreneurs friendly and supportive.
(k) Prioritizing sectors by facilitating inclusive and participatory consultation
processes while conducting Market Needs Analysis (MNAs) and Product Demand
Trends (PDTs).
(l) Through a national consultative process, develop a Youth Trade and Trade
Facilitation Policy and Strategic Plan for the period (2023/2024 – 2027/2028) with
a share vision, mission, strategic objectives, action plan and measurable indicators
(both fiscal and non-fiscal), financing plan and responsibility sharing plan to help
implement this section of the Kenya Youth Manifesto (2022 – 2027).