The government has adopted the use of technology to deliver government programmes efficiently, transparently and free of corruption, President William Ruto has said.
A total of 23,000 government services, the President pointed out, have been digitised, up from 320 in 2023, significantly reducing interaction between the public and officials and considerably reducing instances of corruption.
For far too long, President Ruto said, many Kenyans have not benefited from government programmes because of the malpractices of favouritism and bribery.
He explained that due to digitalisation of programmes such as the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA), every young person has had an equal and fair chance of qualifying to benefit from the start-up capital component.
He said the digital process – from application to identification of beneficiaries – eliminates human interference and awards opportunities based on merit and not connections.
“To eliminate brokers, middlemen and the use of connections, and to make sure every young person in Kenya has an equal chance, we made a decision that no one would be recommended by anyone in the Nyota programme. Everyone had to apply online,” he said.
The President was speaking during the launch of the NYOTA business start-up capital disbursement of KSh147.5 million for beneficiaries in Machakos, Kitui and Makueni counties at Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos town.
The programme will benefit 5,901 young people from the three counties, empowering them to start businesses, create jobs and take charge of their economic future.
President Ruto noted that the NYOTA programme was being rolled out using the inclusive Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda approach, saying it is being implemented at the lowest unit of devolution – the ward.
“Today, this programme benefits between 70 and 80 young people in each of the country’s 1,450 wards,” he said.
To further ensure no one is left out, the President said the NYOTA programme does not require academic qualifications for one to benefit.
“There are people who have not had the opportunity to go to secondary school and college, and it’s not their fault. They are Kenyans and they deserve support,” he said.
He urged politicians throwing mud at the NYOTA programme to keep off, saying it was a big boost for young entrepreneurs.
President Ruto said the transformation of the country will be driven by young people, and he appealed to them not to allow politicians to use them to cause violence.
Instead, the President called on the youth to focus on education, jobs and economic activities to uplift their lives.
He urged the youth to ignore those falsely claiming that Kenya is a failed state, saying the country is forging forward.
He noted that Kenya has had a problem of poor leadership, a gap he said the current government has filled.
Since taking office in 2022, the President pointed out, he has provided transformative leadership that has boosted the economy and set Kenya on the path to success.
He said inflation has come down from 9.6 per cent in 202 to 4.5 per cent now, dollar reserves at the Central Bank have grown from 5.7 billion to 12.3 billion, the highest in the history of Kenya. The dollar-Kenya shilling exchange rate that was at a low of KSh165 three years ago is now at KSh129.
The economy, he explained, had expanded significantly and Kenya has been rated the sixth largest economy in Africa, up from eighth place.
“It is not because we discovered anything new; it is because we have provided leadership,” he said.
He was accompanied by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, Cabinet Secretaries Wycliffe Oparanya (Cooperatives and MSMEs), Salim Mvurya (Sports) and Alfred Mutua (Labour), as well as MPs.
