Job Skills Training for Marginalized Kenyan Youth

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