Kirinyaga county set stage of KENHA scholarships programme

Kirinyaga
County Government has set the stage for the youth to train at its polytechnics
to benefit from courses that will be sponsored by Kenya National Highways
Authority (KeNHA).

Already, the
county government under Governor Annie Waiguru has put measures to ensure the
students will benefit from the technical courses offered courtesy of dueling of
Kenol- Sagana- Marwa highway.

 Waiguru has urged the youth from the county to
apply for technical training scholarships offered by the Kenya National
Highways Authority (KeNHA) at selected Technical, Vocational Education and
Training (TVET) institutions in Murang’a, Kirinyaga and Nyeri counties.

Waiguru said
that as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility to the community living
along

the upcoming
Kenol-Sagana-Marwa dual carriage way, KeNHA has selected Sagana Technical

Institute
and Kaitheri Youth Polytechnic as training centers for skills sponsored program
that

targets the
youth.

She said
that the training will enhance their skills which increases their chance of
being absorbed

in the road
construction jobs, 30 percent of which have been reserved for Kirinyaga
residents as

a result of
her intense lobbying with the national government.

The governor
noted that the training will also enable the youth to secure gainful employment
and

also build
their economic capabilities through self-development.

“For the
youth who have been seeking for jobs, this is an opportunity knocking at your
doorsteps

and you
should seize it by enrolling yourselves in either of these two institutions,” said
the

Governor,
noting that the mega project is labor intensive and youths will be major
beneficiaries

of job
opportunities.

According to
an advert put up by KeNHA, those eligible for the skills training must be aged

between 18
and 35 years and can register with either KCSE or KCPE certificates. The three

terms
scholarship includes tuition fees and accommodation.

The courses
offered at Sagana Technical Institute are Carpentry, Electrical Wireman,
Masonry,

Welding and
Fabrication while those offered at Kaitheri Youth Polytechnic are Motor Vehicle

Mechanics,
Electrical Installation Grade 111 and Hairdressing and Beauty.

Applications
are to submitted at the County Commissioner’s office by 3 rd November.

The 84
kilometer Kenol-Sagana-Marua dual carriage is part of the Great North Road
connecting

the port of
Mombasa to Addis Ababa through Nairobi-Isiolo and Moyale.

 The selected institutions
are Nyeri National Polytechnic, Mathenge Technical, Sagana Technical,  Mathira Technical, Kaitheri Technical and
Michuki Technical.

According to KeNHA Director-General Eng Peter Mundinia the
beneficiaries must be students from poor families in the counties of Murang’a,
Nyeri and Kirinyaga counties, where the North Great Road is passing. 

The government through KeNHA is working on converting the 84
kilometres stretch between Kenol- Sagana- Karatina-Marwa to a dual carriage
highway at Sh30billion.

“We are targeting persons who had dropped out of schools without
any formal training, there is need to empower them from the future,” said
Mundinia.

Category required  for
training

-Youth who are orphaned and/or those from single parenthood
families;

-Young single mothers
who meet the qualifications;

-Applicants who are categorized as persons living with disability;

The programme will see some individuals selected to train and
enhance their skills further in the local Kenya Technical Training Institutions
to secure gainful employment thereafter.

The second phase of the dualling will be Marwa, Chaka- Narumoru-
Nanyuki. The third phase will be Nanyuki- Timau- Isiolo set to be completed by
the year 2030

COURSES TO BE OFFERED UNDER THE SCHOLARSHIP.