It’s every college freshman’s dream to immediately land a job after a long struggle in college. But the bitter truth slumps them right in the face as the rate of unemployment goes higher each day that passes by.
Every year one million young people join the job market in Kenya, pilling on into the ever growing unemployment and job hunting youths in the country.
According to survey by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) in 2018, 7million Kenyans were unemployed with 1.4 million out of this figure desperately looking for jobs.
KNBS survey 2018 indicated that, in 2016, there were about 25 million Kenyans in the working-age bracket of between 15 and 64 years. Out of these, 78 per cent were economically active.
The survey further indicate that 3.7 million of the employed persons in the working age population were under employed, meaning they were available to work for more hours but were not given the opportunity.
According to the United Nations in the Human Development Index (HDI) 2017 report, the rate of unemployment in Kenya is the highest in the East African region hitting a new high at 39.1 percent. This makes it the highest than its neighboring Ethiopia, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda.
Economic growth continues to disappoint and underperform; this paints a worrisome picture for the national economy and the ability to generate enough jobs, let alone the quality of jobs. The persistently high level of vulnerable forms of employment combined with a clear lack of progress in the quality of the job is alarming.
Unemployment in Kenya is a growing problem especially among the youth and has been the election agenda for almost every politician in the past few elections seasons and still continues to be.
Economic growth continues to disappoint and deficit in decent work remains widespread in the country. The country is currently facing a twin challenge of repairing the damage caused by the economic and social crisis and creating quality jobs for tens of thousands of new labors.
The Kenyan labor market is one that is characterized by inadequate employment opportunities against a large and growing population of unemployed people especially the youth. It is dual in nature, presenting a small formal sector alongside a large informal sector.
Massive joblessness, especially among the among the sprightly and innovative youth, is a drag on the economy because it forces unemployed adults to depend on the small working class, stretches family resources and consumes savings for future investments.