Program Focus Areas

1. Economic Prospects

Connecting youth to integrated skills training, job placements, and entrepreneurship support in high-growth sectors.

2. Higher Education Capacity

Building the capacity of Kenyan HEIs to link training with real-world youth economic opportunities.

3. Youth-Serving Systems

Increasing county-level investments and partnerships that serve and include youth in decision-making.

Despite billions in resources invested in Kenyan youth empowerment initiatives, youth still face significant rates of unemployment, limited social and economic opportunities, and major challenges surrounding their livelihoods and well-being. This is due to micro and macro-level challenges that render youth empowerment initiatives ineffective.

Appreciating these challenges and acknowledging the strategic role played by youth in development informed the need for interventions targeted at connecting youth through social and economic opportunities. Therefore, the USAID Empowered Youth Program targets youth between ages 18 -24 and adolescent girls (aged 15-19) in the 5-year Program as the primary focus of empowerment initiatives aimed at connecting them with social and economic opportunities.

The USAID Empowered Youth Program is a USD ($)15 million USAID-funded Program that is executed in 26 Counties in Kenya with a focus on the youth in:

• Isiolo (Garissa, Marsabit, Samburu, Mandera)
• Kakamega (Bungoma, Turkana, West Pokot)
• Kisumu (Homabay, Kisii, Busia)
• Nakuru (Uasin Gishu, Nyeri)
• Kiambu (Nairobi, Kitui, Kajiado)
• Mombasa (Kwale, Makueni, Taita Taveta, Machakos)

Through the successful training model employed at the African Dairy Academy, CoELIB will offer apprenticeships to farmers within the dairy value-chains. The Centre will also train and mentor youth through CoELIB Incubar and CoELIB Media units on sustainable business models and best practices. To help youth in the sports and in the creative industries tap into their potential, CoELIB will also implement a Talent and Sports Program that will train them on how to create revenue streams.

Egerton University will strengthen the capacity of Kenyan HEIs to link training to youth economic opportunities; develop meaningful collaborative partnerships among key actors in youth development; effectively communicate across institutions; and take collective action to innovate, demonstrate, test, and scale new or improved ideas and/or practices that address the needs of youth. CoELIB will also develop the workforce of these institutions to ensure the sustainability of these interventions.

To strengthen youth-serving systems, USAID Empowered Youth will ensure increased investments in youth programs in select counties; increased partnerships with youth organizations, the private sector, and HEIs that train and support youth; and it will regularly involve the youth in key county-level decisions.

For the success and long-term sustainability, the 5-year Program uses a mix of strategic and technical approaches that include a strong collaborating, learning, and adapting (CLA) cycle and a Quadruple Helix Innovation Platform (QHIP) to strengthen collaborations among HEIs, the private sector, county governments, and youth networks.

As a result, youth will be mobilized and engaged, the private sector will be engaged, there will be evidenced scaling up in low-touch counties, Information, Communication, and Technology ICT penetration will increase, and long-term sustainability - through inspiring a culture of learning, continuous improvement, and local ownership - shall be attained.

The Empowered Youth Program leverages a Quadruple Helix Innovation Platform (QHIP) and a Collaborating, Learning & Adapting (CLA) approach to foster partnerships among HEIs, private sector, county governments, and youth networks. This ensures local ownership, continuous learning, and evidence-based scale-up across both high- and low-touch counties.