The State Department for Technical, Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Kenya has implemented a master-plan strategy to disarm youth in conflict-prone areas for skill development.
The master-plan strategy is dubbed skilling for peace and it would be implemented in all conflict prone regions in Kenya.
The Principal Secretary (PS) State Department for Technical, Vocational Education and Training Dr. Esther Thaara Muoria noted that skilling for peace is an idea whose time has come and that it has to be perfectly implemented so that the youth in conflict hotspots in Kenya get skilled.
The PS underscored the critical need of ensuring that the youth in such volatile regions gain skills saying that skilling will enable the youth in these areas to abandon cattle rustling and banditry.
“TVET in partnership with Interpeace is going to mount up a campaign in Northern Kenya and North Rift in order to ensure that the youth get skilled,” noted the PS.
Dr. Muoria disclosed that the State Department for TVET in collaboration with Interpeace undertook a study, designed to explore opportunities for diversified livelihoods of the communities in trouble-spots regions of Northern Kenya and the North Rift.
Additionally, she said, the two partners went ahead and mapped out training areas that will suit the youth and herders in most of these conflict-prone areas.
The PS noted that the intention of the study aimed at integrating herders and the youth in these areas in TVETs as envisaged in the shared national security strategy thereby contributing to sustainable peace, security and development in the regions.
The study also evaluated the potential of “Skills4Peace Initiative” in addressing root causes of conflicts and drying up the sources of conflict in Northern Kenya and North Rift through provision of diversified skills leading to varied economic opportunities, fostering cultural diversity and social cohesion, and promoting sustainable development.
Fortunately, Already 500 youth in Tiaty constituency have embraced the Skills for Peace initiative and are set to join North Rift Technical Vocational College (TVC) to pursue various programs in the institution.
The youth vowed to join the Skills 4 Peace bandwagon to drum up a campaign to ensure that the youth shun cattle rustling to embrace TVET training for economic sustainability.
The TVET PS rallied the Government, the County Governments and development partners to support the Skills for Peace Initiative in order to help TVET to restore peace in these conflict hotbed regions.
By Justus Anzaya
