By MKT Reporter
The East African Employability Summit, launched by the Corporate Career Academy and East African Business Council, aims to provide opportunities to over one million Kenyans annually in areas such as entrepreneurship, health, education, employment, and wellbeing.
The summit encourages youth to volunteer for organisations, gain experience, and adapt to the market to overcome skills mismatch challenges.
Cabinet Secretary for Labour and Social Protection, Dr. Alfred Mutua, emphasises the importance of consistent and dependable employment, advising individuals to spend two or three years in an organisation to show consistency and dependability.
“Volunteer, do something. At least have something on your document saying that at least you have experience, not just sitting at home and waiting to get work,” advised Dr. Mutua.
“We must confront the skills mismatch challenges which contribute to high youth unemployment. There is what you want to be and what there is in the market; sometimes you must be able to adjust,” he added.
Dr. Mutua also emphasises the importance of having certificates from training institutions, as they make individuals more marketable in their field.
He discourages youth from thinking that there are no jobs and encourages them to have a document showing they can read and write.
The summit aims to address the unemployment challenge by addressing the skills mismatch that contributes to high youth unemployment.
The government has enacted policies such as the national skill hub, linking industry to education, training, and research policies, and other frameworks for career guidance and training manual frameworks.