Youths from 113 groups in Nyandarua have received sewing machines, concrete mixtures, salon equipment, car wash machines and walking tractors to boost their businesses.
The Sh13 million worth of equipment was handed over by Governor Francis Kimemia during events to celebrate International Youth Week on Thursday.
Kimemia also launched a Sh4.5 million state-of-the-art music production studio in Ol Kalou.
He also commissioned three equipped youth training centres that will offer ICT facilities in Ol Kalou, Njabini and Miharati at a total cost of Sh4.5 million.
Kimemia promised to escalate the youth empowerment programme to even more deserving youth in the county.
“Successful cases from the last batch of beneficiaries inspire my government to further foreground and anchor the youth component, and agenda, in every department and in every county intervention,” he said.
Previous beneficiaries narrated how the programme had improved their lives.
Image: Ndichu Wainaina
Kimemia said that the programme will extend to skills development, contracting, and labour preference for youth in the county.
“Real stories of real people, our brothers and sisters, who hitherto didn’t have much hope but are today employers and movers of the economy, in their own small and big ways inspire us to do more,” he said.
He regretted that some politicians criticise and dismiss the youth empowerment projects despite the life changing impact they have on the county’s young population.
He urged the residents to ignore such politicians for the county to move forward.
Youths and Sports executive Dominic Murani said that officials had been deployed to the youth groups to train them on entrepreneurship for “this big investment to achieve its desired purpose.