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Kenyan slum youth to benefit from UN Secretary-General’s donation
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23/06/2008
Nairobi



Young people drawn from two Nairobi slums are set to be the first beneficiaries of a donation by UN Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki-moon which is being administered by UN-HABITAT.

At the beginning of last year, while visiting Kenya, United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon was deeply moved at the poverty he witnessed in Kibera, the largest slum in Africa. He, therefore, pledged a donation of USD 100,000 to help train young people living in Nairobi’s slums.

The result is that 70 young people representing 13 different villages of Kibera as well as their colleagues from Mavoko (also an informal settlement on the outskirts of Nairobi) gathered at UN-HABITAT to celebrate the launching of the Youth Empowerment Programme.

Addressing the youth, UN-HABITAT Executive Director Mrs. Anna Tibaijuka encouraged them to move beyond the tensions left by the unfortunate conflicts which took place in Kenya earlier this year. A disputed election process saw skirmishes erupt in Kenya early this year with some 1,200 people losing their lives while over 100,000 were displaced.

Instead, Mrs. Tibaijuka called on young people to take responsibility to empower themselves, organize, and effect positive change in their communities.

The representative from the Kenyan government, Mr. Stephen Jalenga from the Ministry of Youth and Sports, thanked UN HABITAT for its leadership in providing this training, and as well for empowering youth to organize themselves.

“There are over 700,000 people in Kibera, and 60% of them are youth.” stated Linus Sijenti, a youth leader form Kibera. “This project is the first step in giving young people skills to lift them out of poverty.”

Youth chosen for the course will be trained in three key innovative techniques that includes making “Habitat blocks”; glass “Bottle window” tiles; and “Ferro cement” doors.

“Habitat blocks”, are low-cost bricks that are only 20% of the cost of an ordinary brick. Glass “Bottle Window” tiles are near unbreakable glass windows that can be made out of recycled materials while the “Ferro cement” doors are almost fire and bullet proof. Training in these three innovative techniques will allow the participants to attain skills that they can market and use to start small enterprises within their communities.


June 23, 2008 | 4:57 PM Comments  2 comments

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bundi BUNDI PHILIP KABIRU
June 24, 2008 | 12:20 PM
training on innovative techniques
I welcome the in kind support and i wish to encourage others to follow the step of UN secretaryu General.The Kenyan youth needs to be equipped with the modern techniques on how they can add value to what is locally available and utilise it maximumlly for the better.Kenyan youth should not dwell on arguing that there are no jobs but should rise to the occasion and turn around the situation to job creators and at the end win-win proportion.
I believe this is just but a beginning and there is need to do multiplier effect whereby it replicate countrywide due to fact that the issue of housing is very critical and there is need to tripple the effort.
Those who to undergo the training should be ready toing change that is intended.
Although the training specifically target youth from slums i thing there is need to put into consideration whether they have ownership when it comes to implementation?Are they permanent in those slums or they migrated from rural.What do i want to put across?During the training to include atleast one or two youth from each constituency who are ready to walk the talk.
Otherwise its a good gesture and it need to be utilised maximumlly.
I wont hesistate to commend UN-HABITAT fraternity for their valuable contribution.Also my special thanks to Mrs Ann Tibanjuka for her tireless effort all through.Im very much ready to shoulder on and be part and parcel of the team.
Once again need to remember Kenya is on e nation and each one of us have a role to play to make things happen.
Thanks
wakojoel wako-joel
July 1, 2008 | 7:26 AM
Kenyan Possition is different from Ugandan
The slums in central Kampala are going to be cleared and all the people who live in these slums were told to search else where for palces of accomodation and places of work.

Indeed the slums have been places of work as well as acting as places for accomodation for some people most especially the women who have been abandoned by their husbands and now have nowehere to go adn live. They seek refuge in the slums as an alternative.

It is estimated that these slums for instance Kantanga have a larger population of people totaling to 2.5 million people who work and live in Kampala alone.

I presume the government is not handling the case in the right way, I would assume that may be it gets a secure place (area) where all these people can be accomodated.

Not only do these guys in the slums offer direct labour force and an alternative to the work needed in central Kampala, but the slums accomodate schools, shops, Pharmaceuticals among others nevertheless giving employment to the slum dwellers.

This is the direct opposite of the Kenyan point of view in targetting people who live in the slum areas. There are many things that we (youths) need to learn from each other and how to push such issues on advocay ladder and try to see that some peoples' rights are not stampeded on
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