Job Skills Training for Marginalized Kenyan Youth

Dear friends,

As 2025 draws to a close, we'd like to thank you for helping us create economic opportunities for some of Kenya's most underprivileged youth. Our skills training programs, in partnership with our donors, the private and public sectors, are a proven way to change lives for youth. 

SYSC's 2025 HIGHLIGHTS

Construction Skills training: 

We are proud to have provided free construction skills training and secured jobs for 18 youth, in collaboration with county governments, the National Construction Authority, National Industrial Training Authority, CAPYEI and construction industry partners. We also organized internship placements for 10 civil engineering students.

• 4 masons
• 3 plumbers
• 4 welders
• 3 tile layers 
• 2 cabro pavers
• 2 carpenters
• 10 civil engineering student interns 

Policy Advocacy

SYSC has continued discussions with county governments and the construction industry - the biggest employers in Kenya - to consider maximizing job creation in all their projects. This proposal has been well-received and we look forward to its implementation in the near future.

Tailoring and dressmaking:

We are thrilled to have found a new sponsor for this program, which has been on hold since COVID due to a lack of funds. We have recruited two new trainers and will resume training in 2026! 

Scouts & Life Skills Training:

This program, made possible through your donations, promotes leadership and social skills, positive mental health, and strengthens coping strategies and self-confidence. It also teaches health and hygiene practices and decision-making. Youth in our Scouts program also provide much-needed services to our community. We are currently recruiting new members.   

Maternal Health Education 

This special project has trained three Maternal Health Workers, who are now serving women from Shauri Yako, Manjengo and Kiawara's informal communities who might otherwise miss out on essential healthcare services before, during and after pregnancy. Women who do not get recommended health care services during pregnancy are at greater risk of childbirth complications or death during childbirth, or infant health and well-being afterward. This special project is supported by the Nyeri County government and funded by the Government of Japan through JOICFP.  

On behalf of all of us at SYSC, thank you for your unwavering support. Your donations have provided livelihood for many people in desperate need, skills training and jobs, and have made a huge impact in our communities. May we continue to bring hope and change to the lives of those who need it most in 2026.  

Asante sana.

Joe Mwai

Dear Friends and Supporters,

Our programs to create economic opportunities for youth through job training and employment in the construction industry are growing.

Thanks to your support, SYSC has been able to show local county governments in Nyeri, Machakos and Kajiado that our job skills training and creation approach works. They have agreed to partner with our Kgong Kiajido program for the next two years and to provide jobs for our youth who finish with certified construction skills. We have now trained 30 youth under this agreement (7 masons, 3 plumbers, 4 welders, 5 tile fitters, 2 painters, 2 cabro pavers and 7 carpenters) since January 2025. We also welcomed six civil engineering students who have now graduated, certified as skilled construction workers, and secured jobs with county governments.  32 new trainees began in September!

Partnership to support youth and respond to the incredible demand in the construction sector is key to our success. As well as county governments, our programs are run in collaboration with the National Construction Authority, National Industrial Training Authority, CAPYEI and construction industry partners. 

We're also making policy inroads with our ongoing advocacy efforts. County governments have signaled they are willing to create a policy requiring youth skills training and employment placement as part of every infrastructure and construction project. We've proposed that departments in these governments also be required to create an associated budget line in each project. We hope to see this policy change put into place this year - stay tuned!

Maternal Health Education 

SYSC is also collaborating with Nyeri County Government, with support from the Government of Japan, to promote maternal health for people living in Nyeri's informal settlements. Here, the maternal mortality ratio -- the number of women dying of pregnancy-related causes -- is high. Women who do not get recommended health care services before they get pregnant are more likely to die due to pregnancy and childbirth complications. Women’s health before, during and after pregnancy can also have a major impact on an infant’s health and well-being. The government has trained and placed three Maternal Health Workers at SYSC. The strategy is to support pregnant women who are at risk of being left behind in our informal settlements to get medical care and to end preventable maternal and perinatal death. 

Asante sana! Thanks to your unwavering support, we will continue our work to bring hope and change to the lives of those who need it most.

Joe Mwai