Jua Kali carpentry workshops in Lamu will benefit from a total of Sh10.5 million from the national government desk manufacture kitty.
The initiative, which has been rolled out across the whole country, will cost the government Sh1.96 billion under the economic stimulus programme to improve livelihoods of the youth amidst the Covid-19 crisis.
Speaking to KNA on Friday during the launch of the prototype desks in Amu Island, Lamu County Commissioner, Irungu Macharia revealed that Lamu primary schools will receive 3,150 desks while secondary schools will receive 1,050 desks.
“The one-desk per student strategy will enable the national government to realize the re-opening of schools as one of the Covid-19 pandemic safety measures,” Macharia added.
He added that the programme has already been rolled out countrywide adding that the artisans will receive Sh2,500 for every primary school desk and Sh3,800 for every secondary school desk and chair they make.
“The workshops that will provide the desks will be paid directly through the Treasury to ensure no monies are lost in the programme,” he added.
He also said the desks will be made locally by workshops from all the wards, and urged workshop owners to be proactive in supplying the desks to the initiative.
Nationally, 5,254 secondary schools and 5,136 primary schools will benefit from the desks supply.
By Amenya Ochieng
