Vusha Youth Employability
Overview
Vusha’ is a Kiswahili word for transition. Funded by the Rockefeller Foundation through its Digital Jobs Africa initiative, Vusha Youth Employability Program was a demand-driven workforce development program intended to improve employability prospects and income generating capacities of 4,500 young people, aged 20 – 29 years from poor and disadvantaged households in Kiambu, Nairobi, Mombasa and Machakos counties of Kenya.
The project sought to expand ACWICT’s ongoing youth employability program that provides digital skills and life skills training, financial literacy skills, on-the-job experience coupled with job placement support to poor and disadvantaged young people in Nairobi’s main informal settlements. The expansion targeted an additional 4,500 young people and equip them with new and additional skills for accessing and engaging online work to generate new forms of/additional income. The women and youth targeted by the “Vusha” project were at their transition point from high school/vocational and/or tertiary education to the world of work.
Key Program Achievements
4,500 participants in digital skills (IT) skills and employability skills.
Securing internship and job placement opportunities for 3,250 youth trained in various digital jobs including online work.
Formed new partnerships with 282 partners for job placement, mentorships, career talks and post training support for the youth participants of the program.
Connected program beneficiaries to ACWICT YEP alumni association for networking and linkages, post training support, mentorship, exposure and beneficiary tracking.
Developed training curriculum on 21 vocational and digital skills targeting youth at different levels of transition from education to work
Integrating Online work into entire ACWICT youth employability program
Expanded the program to incorporate an innovation to reach Primary school leavers who were previously excluded
Through the Rockefeller Foundation, secured an opportunity to support the pilot phase of the Ajira Digital Program that aimed at training and mentoring 10,000 inexperienced and experienced online workers in Kenya.
