- Kisumu County has announced that all its vocational training centres will have expert child care personnel to support trainee mothers.
- The county has investedSh38 million in VTC equipment, has grown its VTC network from 28 to 30 centres, and has set aside9 million for VTC bursaries.
- The county has passed the ECD Regulations, 2026, giving it a legal framework to register, regulate and set standards for ECD centres and childcare facilities.
The County Government of Kisumu has announced that all vocational training centres (VTCs) within the county will have expert child care personnel.
County Executive Committee Member for Education John Awiti said the caregivers will ensure that children of trainees are well taken care of as their mothers continue with their studies. He said the move is aimed at ensuring that female trainees concentrate on their studies.
Speaking in Kisumu during a media engagement also attended by Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o, Awiti said more than 6,500 young men and women are currently acquiring practical, income-generating skills across 11 disciplines, including electrical engineering, welding, tailoring, masonry, ICT, agripreneurship and plumbing.
Awiti said the county government has invested Sh38 million in equipment for VTCs across the county. He said the investment was not a one-off initiative, but a deliberate, budgeted and institutionalised effort to strengthen vocational training and equip young people with practical skills. Governor Nyong’o said the VTC network has grown from 28 to 30 centres, with St Michael Mariwa in Koru, Muhoroni and Sang’oro in West Nyakach as the latest additions.
Awiti said the skills acquired through vocational training will enable young people to access income-generating opportunities amid shrinking formal employment opportunities. “Whereas formal employment opportunities are shrinking everywhere in the world, the market for skilled hands has never been stronger,” he said.
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He encouraged residents to enrol their sons and daughters in the VTCs, noting that the county government provides a Sh15,000 subsidy for every student. He said the county had also set aside Sh11.9 million for VTC bursaries, adding that no young person should be locked out of vocational training due to lack of fees.
On staffing, Awiti said the county was working to bridge the gap, with 97 trainers currently in place against a requirement of 384. “We are now at 97, with a plan of recruiting 25 every financial year until we reach the requisite number,” he said. He added that the student population in Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions in Kisumu County is approximately 20,814, based on a recent educational demographic survey.
On Early Childhood Development (ECD), Awiti said the county has passed the requisite regulations. He said the ECD Act, 2023, and its Regulations, 2026, pave the way for tighter regulation of ECD centres and childcare facilities across the county. The regulations, he said, would provide clear guidelines for implementing ECD programmes and services within the law, and would enable the county to move to the ground and implement programmes while ensuring that activities in the sector comply with the law.
He described the regulations as a major milestone, saying Kisumu could provide a benchmark for other counties seeking to strengthen ECD services. “The Act gives us the laws governing the operations, but the regulations go into the final details on how we are going to implement all the activities and programmes that we are supposed to do,” Awiti said.
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He cited the registration and standards of ECD centres as some of the areas where the regulations provide detailed procedures. The framework also provides guidelines on nutrition and feeding programmes for children in ECD centres. Awiti said the regulations would help the county implement its programmes within a clear legal framework and reduce the risk of disputes arising from activities undertaken outside the law. He said the document was developed through collaboration between the county department, partners, the County Assembly and the Office of the County Attorney.
By Fredrick Odiero
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