Youth Challenges: Confessions of a Kenyan Youth.
As we celebrate the Kenyan youth on this International Youth Day, it is important for us to have some conversation.
Open, raw and candid.
We need to highlight the challenges most youth face that keep them from reaching their full potential.
The Kenyan Youth:
Its evident the youth serve a very important part in the society. Infact, the youth are the future of any nation.
Young people can be the success or the downfall of a society depending on the opportunities available to them.
Their social, economic and psychological issues should be given top priority to prevent a crisis.
Youth Challenges in Kenya:
- School Dropout Rate
Most of the Kenyan youth either drop out of school or graduate without the skills needed for self-employment. The country’s training institutions take part of the blame.
Two things come to play;
Too few colleges to accommodate all the students or lack of facilities to prepare students for the challenging job market demands.
- Fewer Jobs
Another stumbling block is lack of employment and youth centric opportunities.
There are thousands of youth who graduate from various universities and colleges, ready to enter the job market every year.
However, there is an additional problem.
A large percentage of the Kenyan youth remain unemployed. This is largely attributed to:
- Slow economic growth
- Corruption
- Nepotism
- Demand for many years of experience by potential employers.
- Poor Health
Health has become a major issue affecting the youth. The pain points are majorly sexually transmitted diseases, the exponential spread of HIV/AIDS and drug abuse.
Alcohol, cigarettes, and cannabis sativa have remained the most popular abused substances in the country.
Moreover, abuse of drugs is highly associated with the risks of contracting HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.
On the other hand, Mental health is increasingly becoming a common problem among the youth. Depression, anxiety and various eating disorders are also becoming leading mental problems among the youth.
Failure to adequately address the reproductive health subject among the Kenyan youth is also another challenge. The results – include teenage pregnancies and unsafe abortion.
These are just but a few of the youth challenges in Kenya that affect their day to day lives as they try survive and reach their dreams.
Way Forward for the Kenyan Youth
The Kenyan youth need policies that will address unemployment problems and create an environment where the youth can exploit their potential through value adding initiatives.
Such measures will go a long way to assist the youth in this country overcome the challenge of crime, drug and substance abuse among the youth in Kenya.
The health system should also be geared towards the development of more youth friendly centers to encourage them to seek help on sexual reproductive health and mental health.
Hopefully, a lasting solution can be found to the problems of the Kenyan youth. This may include the launch of more youth groups and support from the government and non-governmental organizations.
