Nandi hills: A total of 600 youths in Nandi Hills Constituency have completed a 20-day training on Social-Emotional Skills Development (SESD) under the National Youth Opportunities Towards Advancement (NYOTA) project, equipping them with skills needed to navigate employment, entrepreneurship and everyday life.
According to Kenya News Agency, the training targeted young people aged 18 to 29, as well as persons living with disabilities aged up to 35, and focused on strengthening competencies that promote employability, productivity, resilience, and positive citizenship. Speaking during the final day of the training at Nandi Hills Township Primary School, Nandi Hills Constituency NYOTA Centre Manager, Brian Kipruto, stated that the exercise had progressed smoothly, with beneficiaries acquiring knowledge that would help them compete effectively in the employment market.
Kipruto emphasized that SESD was a core component of the NYOTA project designed to strengthen employability and life skills, adding that the programme would contribute significantly to improving the lives of beneficiaries. He explained that the training comprised two modules covering soft skills and core business skills. The first module addressed youth as a NYOTA beneficiary, mind education, communication, leadership, interpersonal skills, decision-making, problem-solving, goal setting, etiquette, national values, and climate change. The second module focused on employment and entrepreneurship, including business start-up, business operations, basic financial planning, and digital literacy.
‘In Nandi Hills Constituency, we had two centres, one at Cheplelachbei Primary School and the other at Nandi Hills Township Primary School,’ said Kipruto. ‘During the 20 days, our SESD beneficiaries gained knowledge on effective communication, cultivating resilience and flexibility, and developing problem-solving skills.’ He encouraged the youths to continue practising the skills acquired, support one another, and pursue available opportunities through employment, enterprise, and Government empowerment programmes.
Kipruto also highlighted that effective communication, teamwork, and responsible decision-making could help young people overcome challenges while contributing positively to their families and communities. He urged beneficiaries to share the knowledge with peers who did not participate in the training, saying wider dissemination of social-emotional skills would strengthen youth resilience and improve their preparedness for changing labor market demands.
One of the trainers, Titus Lagat, noted that social-emotional skills were essential in the workplace and for those seeking to establish businesses. Lagat commended the Government for bringing together youths from different education levels and backgrounds, enabling them to learn how to work with people from diverse communities while building useful networks. He urged the Government to consider including modules on mental health awareness, gender-based violence, early marriages, teenage pregnancies, and sexually transmitted infections in future training programmes.
The programme also received positive feedback from its beneficiaries. Monica Jepkogei, a 28-year-old visually impaired participant, commended the Government for the NYOTA initiative, stating that the programme enabled her to gain valuable social-emotional skills while networking with other youths. Another beneficiary, Device Mbarley, a mason, highlighted that the training equipped him with knowledge that would help him maintain good working relationships, solve problems, and improve productivity at his workplace.
The SESD programme was delivered through a 20-day intensive, classroom-based training implemented by Chisawe Holdings Limited, the contracted firm responsible for training NYOTA beneficiaries in Nandi County.
