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{
    "id": 978258,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/978258/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 268,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Nominated, ODM",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. (Ms.) Dennitah Ghati",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 856,
        "legal_name": "Dennitah Ghati",
        "slug": "dennitah-ghati"
    },
    "content": "young people in the streets with degrees and they have nothing to do apart from the boda boda business. Young people in this country should not look at boda boda as the only business they can engage in. We need to diversify. It comes with capacity building, training and how we empower our young people. I have looked at the Amendment Bill and, it is good. It is looking at how we can strengthen the National Youth Council at the national level. We have to bear in mind that majority of the young people live in our counties. The county chapter of the National Youth Council should look after the young people in the county. It is the responsibility of county governors to take care of young people because that is where young people reside. As we think about empowering the young people, every county governor should ensure that they put in place mechanisms to absorb our young people who are university graduates or who are continuing with education to attain skills through internship. Every county should have criteria for creating internship opportunities for our youth to get experience that is sought when they are looking for employment. Employers look for experience. Where do young people get experience, for example, if one is coming all the way from Isebania yet their own county has not prepared them? It is, therefore, the responsibility of our counties to ensure that even 30 per cent of our young people should be absorbed – even if it is on internship basis – as the Constitution stipulates to gain experience. We have done well in this House in terms of scrapping some of the requirements of employment. Most of our employers in this country look for CRB clearance certificate; Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) certificate and certificate of good conduct. Young people living in Migori or Turkana do not have so many of these certificates. If we have not prepared structures in villages where we come from for these young people, how do we expect them to get employment in Nairobi, Mombasa or Garissa? I am happy that this Amendment Bill is looking at the issue of youth with special needs. If there is a group of young people in this country who are suffering, it is the youth living with disabilities. Youths living with disabilities like hearing impairment, visual impairment and those using wheelchairs are not considered. They do not go to school and they do not get any form of employment. That is the reason most of the time in our counties, you will see young people living with disabilities crawling to governors’ offices to look for employment. We need to be serious. I am happy that this Amendment Bill seeks to look at issues of young people living with disabilities. Nobody talks about youth living with disabilities. They have no office. We have to look at the infrastructure of offices where they go to work and look for jobs. Consider this scenario where a young person living with disability is going to be interviewed? As an MP for persons living with disabilities in this country, I have seen situations where if an employer sees that you have a disability, even if you have the right papers, you are not given an opportunity to present yourself for an interview. We have to change that mindset if we are talking about not leaving anyone behind in this country. We have to ensure that our young people get equal opportunities. Where do young people who do not join universities go to? They are supposed to join other institutions of higher learning. We have to make those institutions accessible to our young people and ensure that they get jobs. I am happy that devolution had provided opportunities for jobs. That is what the National Youth Council (Amendment) Bill needs to take into consideration. Right now, we are in the mood of BBI and I will not be shy to talk about BBI and how it is pronouncing itself on tax rebates for young people in this country. I support the amendment. The BBI is proposing to provide tax rebates for young people in this country so that they able to get access to loans and to support their Small and Micro Enterprise Promotion Service (SMEPS) in this country. Those are The electronic version of the Official Hansard Report is for information purposes only. Acertified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor."
}