The government will pay a monthly stipend of Ksh 6,000 to youth placed in internships under the set to be launched National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) Project.
The initiative aims to provide jobless young people, many of them without academic qualifications, with on-the-job experience in key sectors of the economy.
The NYOTA Project that is set to be launched later this month mainly targets to offer paid on-job working experience support to vulnerable young people aged between 18 and 29 or persons with disabilities who are up to 35 years old, who are secondary school finalists or below. Most employers overlook this group due to their lack of professional training.
Under the Project, the government targets to place 90,000 youth in various institutions spread across key sectors of the economy to gain the valuable on the job experience for a period of three to six months. During this internship period, the beneficiaries will receive a monthly stipend of Ksh 6,000.
There is also a provision for government support for the youth keen on securing work opportunities outside Kenya.
Youth Affairs and Creative Economy, Principal Secretary, Fikirini Jacobs says the Government of Kenya will offer 600 youth job placements abroad to gain experience. “We will offer them up to Ksh 300,000 to support them settle into their jobs abroad,” said Fikirini.
One of the key components of the NYOTA Project, is supporting the youth earn from their skills and innovation to drive the economy.
The Youth Affairs and Creative Economy Principal Secretary, describes the NYOTA Project as a “strategic milestone in harnessing the potential of Kenya’s youth.”
Those interested in the NYOTA project have been submitting their applications since 11th July 2025. Already, over one million applications have been submitted, which is a vote of confidence in the project by Kenyan youth as well as a signal of the high demand for youth empowerment opportunity.
Explaining why the application process is automated, Youth Affairs and Creative Economy, Principal Secretary, Fikirini Jacobs, said: “The application process is fully digital by dialling *254# on your phone. This removes bureaucratic hurdles and ensures equal access for all youth across Kenya.”
By offering internship opportunities both locally and in other countries, the NYOTA project aims to empower Kenya’s youth, whose population is projected to rise to 22.3 million by the year 2030, showcase their skills so as to secure decent work opportunities as a way of tackling unemployment crisis and accelerate the country’s economic growth.
