The Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) in partnership with Twiva today announced a new project dubbed Twende Digital Project, which is being funded by the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment (CFYE) to oversee the creation of work opportunities for young digital content creators while supporting SMEs in adopting the use of technology through intensive capacity building and technical assistance on the use of digital skills and platforms, which will eventually help these businesses to scale up. This Project majorly focuses on addressing the critical issue of youth unemployment in Kenya where the recent statistics by the Kenya National Bureau Statistics indicated that over 50 percent of the 2.97 million jobless Kenyans are in the ages of 18 to 29 years of age.

The Twende Digital Project is guided by the CFYE’s goal of fostering youth employment initiatives in Africa. Hence, the Project will provide significant work opportunities to both rural and urban setups in the country such as Nairobi, Nakuru, Kisumu, Mombasa, Eldoret, Nyeri, Machakos, Kiambu, Garissa, and Kakamega. The selected businesses will enjoy digitization services and tools for free for the next 12 months including influencer marketing service credits, content creation credits, access to business digital coaches, access to influencers or resellers to help resell the SMEs' goods, linkage to logistics and fulfillment partners, digital marketing training, and the digital marketing advisory services.

Gracing the occasion was Paul Ngugi, Deputy Country Lead, Challenge Fund for Youth Employment at Palladium; Dr. Ehud Gachugu, Director Youth and Jobs at KEPSA; Peter Kironji, CEO Twiva; various SMEs business owners who are also members of KEPSA; and content creators across different sectors.

Here are highlights from the launch:

“Enterprises stand to have a great chance of unlocking the wealth of opportunities and building a global competitive advantage through adoption and prioritizing digitization. As the benefits of digitization become clearer for businesses where they stand to benefit from access to wider markets, more efficient processes, increased productivity, better stock management, and reduced costs; hence the adoption of digitization cannot be ignored. Besides providing solutions for the growth of these businesses, digitization has brought about new and more exciting work opportunities for the young people in Kenya. Collaborations with the private sector and such social commerce platforms will accelerate us reaching our objective of creating more work opportunities for young people” - Dr. Ehud Gachugu, Director of Youth and Jobs at the Kenya Private Sector Alliance.

“A great lesson we have drawn in executing employment projects in Kenya is the fact that meaningful youth participation is a key factor in attracting and retaining youth in employment. The Challenge Fund for Youth Employment plans to create 230,000 jobs for young people in Africa by 2026. These jobs should be dignified and fulfilling work as per the African strategy of good jobs and good salaries. We have also learned that it is very crucial to support the private sector, especially in measuring the impact of youth employment initiatives. This is why digitizing the SMEs will not only help expand these businesses but also ensure the creation of jobs”- Paul Ngugi, Deputy Country Lead of the Challenge Fund for Youth Employment.

As a social commerce platform that gives micro, small, and medium enterprises digital access to markets through content creators, Twiva will play a pivotal role in supplying experienced social media influencers and resellers as well as the social commerce platforms to market and resell goods and services on behalf of these SMEs. This will then see the creation of work opportunities for the influencers while at the same time boosting the productivity of the SMEs through the integration of digital technologies.

“As a social commerce platform that gives micro, small, and medium enterprises digital access to markets through content creators, Twiva will play a pivotal role in supplying experienced social media influencers and resellers as well as the social commerce platforms to market and resell goods and services on behalf of these SMEs. The anticipated impact of the Twende Digital Project is not just a statistic; it's a transformation. As we aim to elevate the average income of employed youth from less than Kes 10,000 to approximately Kes 25,000, the project becomes a catalyst for change, injecting vitality into the lives of young individuals” - Peter Kironji, CEO & Co-founder, Twiva.

“It is important for businesses to look for an influencer that they can connect with and can help elevate their business to the next level. Branding requires a 360 approach from image and logos to the customer experience. Businesses need to involve influencers who can ensure improved visibility to their potential clients while they concentrate on other core functions of the business” - Philip Karanja, the CEO of PhilItTV and a content creator.

In a world grappling with challenges, Twende Digital emerges as a beacon of hope, illuminating a path toward economic empowerment, inclusivity, and a future where every young individual has the opportunity to thrive. The partnership is also a testament to the transformative power of collaboration and innovation. Twende Digital is a roadmap towards a brighter, more equitable tomorrow.

Collaboration among the private sector, development partners, government, and even the media is crucial for fostering the growth of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and creating youth employment. By combining diverse resources, expertise, and support, these partnerships can address multifaceted challenges, provide holistic assistance, and amplify the impact of such Projects on youth employment.