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I was privileged to be given an opportunity by Margaret Lesuuda on behalf of Kenya High Commission in London to talk to Kenyan students in UK about what’s next after graduation. My talk was basically on 4 points that touched upon the reality that students will face once they finish their study and what they need to do in order to make things happen for them to be successful in either employment but mostly self-employment.
Life After Graduation
I will be writing a series of blog posts for each talking point as I have been getting so many requests to write more articles on these topics.
- Here & Now for You
- Hitting The Ground Running
- Getting Started in Kenya
- Making A Difference: Self Employment
We have always been told go to school so that we can be employed. But that’s not the case anymore. In Kenya, 40% of the population is unemployed. That’s just over 17 million people of whom 70% are youth. That comes to around 10 million. How can you compete with 10-17 million people, most of whom have the same education level as you? That’s what nobody is talking about.
First thing students need to understand is that they are already a valuable asset. Our parents or sponsors have invested millions in our education and this has created the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills that we can use to make a difference in the world at the same time earn an income from it. But most people don’t see it that way. We sometime feel down when things don’t go our way after graduation. We hate being a statistic of unemployed Kenyans. I have been there as well. But we shouldn’t dwell at the point in our lives. We need to do something.
Let’s not wait for Government to give us jobs. Let’s create our own jobs. One thing I have learnt is that Government doesn’t create jobs, business do. The function of Government is to simply make the environment conducive so that you and I can start our business with fewer challenges.
At the moment, the government seems to be heading in the right direction to creating ways of helping youth to start off their business. With such initiatives as Uwezo Fund, 30% Government Tenders for Youth & Women among others, this will certainly give the youth a fighting chance in making something for themselves.
To be continued…
