Barack Obama praises co-operative project in Kenya

On his recent visit to Kenya, United States President Obama highlighted a youth project supported by the USA’s National Business Co-operative Association. The White House leader mentioned Yes...

On his recent visit to Kenya, United States President Obama highlighted a youth project supported by the USA’s National Business Co-operative Association. The White House leader mentioned Yes Youth Can as a successful case study of what youth can achieve in Kenya.

“There are some amazing examples of what’s going on right now with young people,” said the President, who was in Kenya to attend the Global Entrepreneurship Summit. “I’m hopeful because of a young man named Richard Ruto Todosia. Richard helped build Yes Youth Can—I like that phrase, ‘Yes Youth Can’… After the violence of 2007 and 2008, Yes Youth Can stood up to incitement and helped bring opportunity to young people that were scarred by conflict.”

Yes Youth Can is a USD $1.9m (£1.2m) project aimed at giving young people the skills to govern their own programmes as well as speak out about the issues affecting them. Funded by USAID, the United States’ Agency for International Development, the programme is implemented in Nairobi and Kenya’s coast region by NCBA CLUSA. Yes Youth Can is now the most prominent civil society organisation in Kenya, comprising one million members. The project brings together young entrepreneurs and leaders that have developed credit unions or small businesses.

“That’s the kind of young leadership we need,” President Obama told the audience, which included 34 Yes Youth Can participants. As part of the project around 90,000 youth were linked to credit institutions and seven Saving and Credit Co-operatives (SACCOs) were set up for young people and youth groups.

Democratic youth groups are known in Kenya as ‘bunges’. They play a key role in forming the country’s future leaders by enabling young people to have a voice and engage with government organisations. Over 15,000 village level youth ‘bunges’ exist so far across the country.

Through Yes Youth Can over 43,000 young people, 40% of whom are women, have been elected to leadership roles in village councils, local health committees, women’s groups, farmers groups or co-operatives. Since the beginning of the programme in 2011, 87% more youth are involved in the coast provinces and 67% more in Nairobi.

“When it comes to the people of Kenya – particularly the youth – I believe there is no limit to what you can achieve … We are investing in the young people of Kenya and the young people of this continent … and it’s the young people who must take the lead,” said Barack Obama.

Referring to President Obama’s visit, Joyce Wafula, Chief of Party for NCBA CLUSA’s Kenya Program: “They were inspired as the leaders that will make the change Kenya needs”.

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