By Kamau Njoroge
Mount Kenya University Founder and Chairman Prof Simon Gicharu has urged graduates and youths in the country to take advantage of the Hustler Fund kitty to establish income generating ventures that can earn them a living.
Gicharu said that if well utilized, the programme will free many youths in the country from the shackles of unemployment.
The Chairman was addressing graduands during the University’s 22nd graduation ceremony held at MKU Pavilion grounds in Landless Estate, Thika. Over 4,500 graduates were conferred with PHD, Masters, Bachelors Degrees, Diplomas and Certificates in diverse areas of study.
“This is a noble government initiative that if put into proper use will help our graduates and the youths of this country get seed capital to establish their own enterprises. I’m urging our graduates to take advantage of the initiative and other government funds to create their own jobs instead of going back to their homes to wait for white-collar jobs,” Gicharu said.
The Chairman noted that all MKU students have been trained on entrepreneurship and have been equipped with requisite skills and knowledge thereby giving them a competitive edge in the business world.
“We are urging those we are releasing into the job market to be entrepreneurial and ensure that they are abreast with the technological advancements so that they can succeed in their ventures and become job creators instead of job seekers,” he said.
At the same time, Gicharu divulged that MKU has partnered with Koblenz University of Germany in the training of Kenyan nurses with an aim of linking them with the job market in Germany.
He said that medical students at MKU will be trained on German language to enable them work and train further in Germany through the programme.
“This is an innovative, new strategy of raising healthcare access at a global level, and a vital internalization endeavor at MKU. The programme offers opportunities to young Kenyans pursuing healthcare courses that will lead to paid apprenticeships and ultimate job opportunities in Germany,” he said.
He noted that the initiative will assist most of the Kenyan-trained nurses who get frustrated with lack of jobs at the end of their training and end up going abroad as domestic workers and especially in the middle-east countries.
“We’ve had instances where our trained young people have been murdered and others maimed in other countries. They have even been named as illegal migrants. We want to bring this to an end through this initiative by ensuring that they get decent jobs and be recognized by the host countries,” Gicharu said.
He said that the University will work closely with the government to ensure success of the initiative.
“The Board of Directors appreciates the new arrangement by the National Government where a Department of Diaspora Affairs under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been created. We plan to reach out to the Ministry and to the new Department and link them up to this new initiative at MKU,” Gicharu said.
