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"id": 94736,
"url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/94736/?format=api",
"text_counter": 223,
"type": "speech",
"speaker_name": "Mr. Muriithi",
"speaker_title": "The Assistant Minister for Industrialization",
"speaker": {
"id": 91,
"legal_name": "Ndiritu Muriithi",
"slug": "ndiritu-muriithi"
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"content": "If you look at the uptake of Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) and Women Enterprise Development Fund (WEDF), many constituencies up to now have balances. That question is linked to this issue of expectations. Do I go to polytechnic or Form IV in order to find a job? I know, and I am sure hon. Members will agree with me that, quite often, the kind of calls they receive from constituents say: âLook, hon. Member of Parliament, my son or daughter has finished school. She has a Form IV certificate. Can you do something about it?â This is what we are talking about; how do we improve the question of competencies and expectations and say that, that old song that used to tell young people to read â I wish I was speaking in Swahili â go to school and if you finish, you will get a nice job, nothing can be further from the truth. The point of education is to make people competent and effective human beings, be it that they are employed by others or in fact, if they are really clever, they employ others and make a pile of cash. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, if you look at the recommendations of this Committee, it is quite clear that they agree with many other people who have looked at this phenomenon to say that the solution lies in the broader opening up of economic opportunities. First of all, and I know other speakers have pointed out this question, how do we open up economic opportunities for more people; for the majority of Kenyans? I think the issues we have been grappling with are not just in the youth phenomenon, but how to reform politics and go about production and distribution. These are the questions. How we are going to expand economic opportunities for everybody? For example, I want to state here that both my Ministry and Ministry for Youth Affairs and Sports have been running programmes like Jitihada and Chora Bizna whose purpose is to reach out to the bulk of the citizenry and look for people interested in the building industry and business. That is only one thing! I want to also state here the whole point about the procurement law--- We are saying in the procurement law that if the public sector entity is buying Kshs50 million or less in goods and services, the competition must be exclusively Kenyan. I hope that the private sector has noticed in the last few months that the Government has made a policy that, for example, on the question of furniture, the Government will only buy Kenyan furniture. If you drive around Nairobi, you cannot help but see all those many young men and women who are making fantastic furniture. We, as the Government, have no business going out to buy furniture from elsewhere when we are making such products in our country. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, the procurement law is supposed to be part of our strategy for expanding economic opportunities to all. I want to note with a bit of unhappiness that many business people out there do still take the opportunities to import products. Since they are Kenyan registered companies they then meet the legal requirement for Kenyan companies. The intention of the policy is to encourage local production to expand economic opportunities for everyone. One issue, in terms of opening up of economic opportunities, that continues to be a challenge, and we, as a Government, need to look for ideas on how to deal with it, is the fact that traditionally in Kenya, wealth that existed with the first generation of Kenyans after Independence is held in fairly illiquid assets. These are assets that young people are not able to participate in. For example, when we have had Initial Public Offer (IPOs) in the last two or three years, whether it is KenGen, Safaricom or any company that has come to the Nairobi Stock Exchange, you have seen the enthusiasm with which Kenyans, the young, old, middle aged and students have come forward, because it affords them an opportunity to participate both in wealth creation and so on. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, one area that we are grappling with, and that is truly ripe for ideas, is the whole question of how to expand participation in tradable assets in terms of the stock exchange, perhaps even an intermediate term. I know that my colleagues here in the Government have called for the establishment of over-the-counter trading in order to have an intermediate position between the really small business and the larger corporate that is able to list on the stock exchange. These are ideas and questions that we are grappling with, and we hope that we will be able to find answers. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, there has been debate during constitution- making about the so-called second generation economic and social rights. I want to state here that I feel that this is a really significant question. I was absolutely happy that they were included and that the citizens of Kenya saw it fit to ratify the Constitution. If you go back to why young people are involved in these issues--- The Committee Report talks about the contribution to this problem by unemployment, idleness and so on. If you accept that one critical way to deal with this, in the longer term, is expanding the economic opportunities available to young people, then entrenching economic and social rights in the fundamental law of the land is very critical. The committee also talks about lack of housing, lack of access to health and other facilities. It talks about the contribution by these factors to the emergence of these unauthorized groups. Therefore, entrenching the positive or the reverse action--- We should ensure that we are expanding the availability and access to these critical services to young people; this is absolutely vital. I was quite pleased that this was done. I want to close by saying the following: For a very long time, many of us grew up being told that we were the leaders of tomorrow. Many years down the line we still find that we are leaders of tomorrow. Hon. Members are agreeing with me is that we are leaders of today. It is our job to provide leadership, not just during this period of implementing the Constitution but also in the future. How will we be on time with Vision 2030? How will we ensure that we are a middle income country where everybody has equitable access to goods and services and to quality of life? I think it is about time we put our thinking caps on and were able to move forward. I am sometimes saddened by those who continue to insist that we must look at decisions already made and continue to re-look at them instead of implementing the things we have agreed on, as a nation, and ensuring that we create programmes and processes that are useful to young people and that expand the opportunities for them. Madam Temporary Deputy Speaker, I support."
}