Over 1300 young entrepreneurs in Niarobi County on Monday, November 11 graduated after undergoing Financial Literacy program sponsored by Shining Hope for Communities (SHOFCO).

The youth participated in a two-month rigorous training program aimed at empowering young entrepreneurs to operate sustainable businesses.

“Those who have graduated will get a loan facility from Shofco Sacco at a very low interest rate of 6%. We need to empower our young people by making them business owners.

“Those who have been trained will have an opportunity to expand or start their businesses and employ other youth,” SHOFCO Founder and CEO Dr. Kennedy Odede said during the graduation ceremony.

The youth who graduated joined over 5000 who have been trained in Nairobi alone by SHOFCO.

“This is a program we have launched across various counties in Kenya. For example, we are looking at training over 3000 youth in Mombasa in the next three months.

“Running a business in Kenya is not easy, especially when you are a young person. That is why we must empower our young people through training and give them financial support and that’s what Shofco Sacco is doing,” Dr. Odede stated.

At the same time, he called on the youth to take advantage of the opportunity they have been given to improve their lives.

“You will not find loan anywhere in Kenya at 6% per annum. For us, it is not about making profit, it is about empowering young people.

“We give them loan without asking for their CRB status or collaterals because we believe in them. Most of these youth are drawn from slums across Nairobi and no financial institution can trust them.

“They are seen as high risk, but we see them as high opportunity,” Dr. Odede added.

Florence Kangethe, beneficiary of the training program, thanked SHOFCO for supporting the youth especially young mothers who are going through a lot to make ends meet.

“On behalf of the youth, I want to say thank you to SHOFCO for giving us this opportunity. We all know that it is not easy to get money now for any business, but SHOFCO has believed in us and ready to support us with money after this training,” Florence said.

This year alone, Shofco Sacco has given over Ksh40 million in form of loans to youth to either expand or start their businesses.

“We have loans that are tailored towards our young people who are running small businesses or those who want to start their businesses.

“We want the youth to run successful businesses in order to employ other young people. That is the only way to kill joblessness that is very rampant at the moment across the country,” Victor Owiti, Shofco Sacco General Manager, said.

Under its Youth Voice and Empowerment (YVE) program, SHOFCO intends to reach 2.2 million young people across Kenya in five years through various initiatives.

The YVE program is a multi-faceted initiative that focuses on five key interventions aimed at creating opportunities for youth by providing solutions to help them access financial services, pursue employment, find linkages to work and participate in dialogues that impact their future.

The program is further building the capacity of youth-focused community-based organizations that are supporting young people to earn and save more and create greater impact in their communities, demonstrating the important role that the overall social sector is playing in youth empowerment.