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Contacts   +254 726 603 528

+254 041 231 8854

+254 725 32 86 24

info@shirikishopartykenya

Shirikisho Party of Kenya, P.O. Box 84648-GPO 80100 Mombasa Office, Githere Plaza, first floor Haile-Selassie Avenue.

Youth

The problem.
Shirikisho defines  Youth as those of the age between 18-35 years. Traditionally, in many African cultures, the youth were executors of decisions of the older generations. This age group was in most communities the warrior age group instructed to defend the community from aggression.

During the colonial era, youth fully and effectively fought for Independence. It also followed that during the Lancaster House Constitutional Conference, most of the youth in political leadership were an insignificant minority. In the early days after Independence many youthful members of Parliament were also an insignificant minority. Most of these youthful leaders such as Tom Mboya, Pio Gama Pinto, J .M. Kariuki and Martin Shikuku were extremely hard working and independent minded. Arising out of this independent mindedness most of them often clashed with the establishment because they challenged
the status quo. A number of them as a result ended up dying tragically. The youth in leadership were also central to the so-called second liberation this country. The seven bearded sisters in Parliament, led by Mashengu wa mwachofi, Chibule wa Tsuma and James Orengo attempted to challenge the establishment so that the problems facing the country (particularly the youth) could be solved. However they could not break the entrenched culture of political patronage and sidelining of the youth.

Arising from the above scenario, the problems of the youth have continued to impart negatively on their aspirations. The glaring problems are:- Lack of educational and employment opportunities, lack of adequate representation in Parliament and cabinet, non-involvement in development strategies contributing to economic and social marginalization of the youth. Some of these issues can be seen in problems of acquiring Birth Certificates, Identity Cards and Passports.

It is due to this lack of effective youth representation in parliament and the cabinet that all economic development strategies of all successive governments have ignored the youth. There is no effective youth policy on leadership, education and creation of employment. As a result many youth still cannot access education opportunities and employment. The government has ignored the development of the informal sector as potential employer of the majority of the youth and identification of talents among them.

Policy Vision.
Shirikisho believes in an all-inclusive democracy and society where youth have their roles, rights and responsibilities in the national socio economic and political reality. They need to take their rightful position as the vanguard component for leadership, economic growth and democratization. Kenya needs a vibrant booming economy with a growing demand for jobs that is higher than the numbers emerging from population growth and the school system. This is only possible if the youth are involved in decision-making.

Action.
Shirkisho will:

1. Facilitate a national process that will result in the national youth policy for leadership and development.

2. Initiate and ensure the enactment of legislation to establish a youth fund for national development and through participatory processes enable the youth to participate fully in its establishment, operationalization and sustenance.

3. Initiate enactment of legislation that ensures the leadership role of youth under 35 years in the social, political and economic activities of the Nation is realized.

4. Create linkages between the education sector and the economy through legislation and policies where the youth n school appreciate what is happening in the economy and aspire to the participation thereof as employees and self employed components of the national and regional economies.

5. Empower the youth physically, economically, financially, morally and politically.

6. Facilitate easy acquisition of national documents e.g identification cards, birth certificates and passports.

7. Prepare the youth for higher learning and open up more opportunities for the youth.

8. Initiate guiding and counseling programmers on HIV/AIDS, Drug abuse, premarital sex, early marriages and peer pressure influence.

9. Create moral awareness of the people’s existing cultural values e.g the model of dressing, food and religion.