Learning to Earning: Piloting a Collaborative System to Broker Youth Employment in Kenya

• In Event: Youth-Centered Education Through Youth Perspectives on Wellbeing and Futures

Proposal

Introduction
‘Mheshimiwa unafuliza na my future’ (Honourable, you are borrowing with my future) was a phrase echoed by many young Kenyans during the 2025 youth protest, popularly known as the GenZ protest. What began as resistance to punitive taxes soon reflected deeper frustrations with economic hardship and lack of jobs (The Guardian, 2024).
These protests exposed what statistics have long shown: Kenya is among the youngest countries in the world, with about 75% of its population under 35 (World Bank, 2024). While the official youth unemployment rate is 11.9% (ILO Estimate, 2024), this masks the reality that most young people survive in precarious, low-paying informal work. With only 10% of the workforce in formal jobs, millions remain trapped in vulnerable roles.
Public vocational training centers (VTCs) sit at the heart of this challenge and opportunity. Each year, over 100,000 young Kenyans—many first-generation learners—enroll in these institutions (TVET Authority, 2025). Yet despite government initiatives, challenges such as inadequate resources, outdated equipment, and limited industry linkages affect the quality of training (WANJALA, 2025). Employers, meanwhile, emphasize a mismatch between youth skills and workplace needs, particularly in technical, digital, and soft skills (WEF, 2023). As industries evolve in manufacturing, energy, and services, demand for adaptable, work-ready talent is rising, underscoring the need for stronger collaboration between VTCs and employers.
This paper draws on a 12-month pilot in Kisumu and Nairobi counties that brought together government, industry, and civil society to co-create pathways for youth, focusing on strengthening the transition from training to wage employment.
Objective
The study examines how dialogues between government and industry are helping reduce barriers for Kenyan youth accessing employment. It further explores the role of digital youth-to-work platforms in supporting such collaborative systems and improving transitions from training to work.
Methodology
The pilot engaged 1,034 youth (50% women) across 35 VTCs and 15 technical courses in Kisumu and Nairobi over 12 months. A mixed-methods longitudinal design captured quantitative and qualitative insights into youth transitions from training to employment. Baseline facility audits and standardised questionnaires mapped infrastructure, instructional practices, equipment, and employability support.
Industry perspectives were collected through semi-structured interviews to identify attachment and employment opportunities. Teacher capacity building involved a 40-hour hybrid program integrating digital microlearning, gamified strategies, and collaborative lesson co-creation, supported by 100+ instructional and technical videos and peer-assisted WhatsApp groups.
The digital youth-to-work platform NexTayari was launched to enable convergence between youth, VTCs, counties, and industry partners, supporting job matching, credentialing, learning resources, and real-time tracking of youth placement and support needs. Civil society facilitators provided mentorship, monitoring, and counseling, creating feedback loops to guide youth and engage employers.
Data collection combined structured questionnaires at baseline and 3, 6, 9, and 12 months with in-depth interviews, focus groups, and observations. Quantitative data were analysed for trends, while qualitative data captured how collaboration and digital tools supported youth employability.
This triangulated approach ensured interventions were grounded in real-world needs while fostering multi-stakeholder collaboration.
Findings
Key findings through the approach:
Capacity-Building Opportunities Limited; Trainers Embrace Interactive Learning and Digital Tools: 95% of trainers reported this was their first formal capacity-building session, highlighting long-standing gaps in support. Feedback from videos and photos across 35 institutes showed strong demand for more training, digital videos, and peer exchange. Within 30 days, students and teachers across 2–3 institutes created interactive posters, with classrooms adopting games and collaborative activities—indicating early adoption of participatory methods. The remaining 32 institutes were slower in adoption, likely due to the novel approach, requiring additional support. County governments expressed interest in digitizing records and accessing instructional videos via NexTayari, also sharing this model with peers, indicating potential for scaling VTC capacity.
Industry Linkages Ensure Access, Yet Employment Conversion Requires Facilitated Guidance: Data from county representatives showed that before the intervention, only 40% of students secured mandatory on-the-job training. Following facilitator-led coordination, 100% of those eligible and willing participated, with 927 opportunities across counties. These placements increased youth visibility to employers and provided practical exposure to industry tools and practices. However, they did not guarantee long-term employment; at the end of three months, only 4% secured salaried roles. Encouragingly, 92% of industry partners across automotive, manufacturing, and hospitality indicated willingness to offer similar opportunities, and 77% felt that after attachments, students were ready for formal employment. Persistent gaps in soft skills, confidence, and awareness were addressed through digital upskilling tools, including AI-assisted interview preparation, video repositories, and structured guidance.
Sustained Touchpoints Drive Longer Retention: Longitudinal tracking revealed a clear upward trend in youth engagement. Immediately after on-the-job training, only 16% of participants were on a productive pathway, employed, self-employed, or pursuing further studies. By three months, this rose to 34%, and at six months, 67% of youth were actively engaged. This progression illustrates that initial exposure alone is insufficient; continued facilitator touchpoints are critical for supporting youth retention in jobs.
Gendered Patterns Highlight Structural Barriers: Equity and sectoral analysis revealed important patterns. At six months, 78% of young men transitioned compared to 56% of young women, reflecting structural barriers in male-dominated trades. Among women, 92% accessed service-oriented roles such as beauty, hospitality, and reception. Men, by contrast, engaged in a broader range of technical trades - electrical, plumbing, mechanical repair, masonry, while also accessing service-sector positions. These findings highlight the need for gender-responsive counselling and support systems, alongside deliberate industry facilitation, keeping in mind gender-equitable access.
Conclusion
The pilot demonstrates that training-to-employment transitions are possible when counties, industry, and youth engage through shared collaborative space. Scaling requires sustained government leadership, co-created pathways with industry, and digital systems like NexTayari to reduce information gaps, track outcomes, and extend learning. Facilitators remain vital in guiding youth and building trust, while structured follow-ups translate opportunities into action. Above all, interventions must center youth agency, aligning training with aspirations and potential to foster employability, dignified livelihoods, and resilient labor market ecosystems.

Authors

• Oshin Lakhani, Pratham International

• Angel Mohan Kandathil, Pratham International