Kenya Skills for Prosperity Programme

The goal of Leonard Cheshire’s Kenya Skills for Prosperity Programme (KS4P) is aligned with that of the UK Government’s Global Skills for Prosperity Programme announced in August 2018: “Increased capacity for inclusive economic growth due to increases in labour productivity, which will contribute to poverty reduction”. This KS4P is aligned to Kenya Vision 2030, and the Big 4 Agenda, which aims to transform Kenya into a newly industrialising, middle income country, providing a high quality of life to all its citizens by 2030. One of the four major pillars of Vision 2030 is investing in the people of Kenya, especially young people through education and training. Countries with higher levels of education and highly skilled citizens are not only more competitive in the global economy but can also quickly respond to challenges and seize opportunities. The ambition of this consortium is to fulfil that commitment by also meeting the obligation of Leave No One Behind, with a particular focus on marginalised youth, persons with disabilities and women and girls. A 2018 World Bank report analyses how gender inequalities in earnings contribute to losses in wealth. The exclusion from education and the labour market of persons with disabilities also contributes to higher economic costs that society has to pay . The exclusion from education may lead to lower employment opportunities, both in the form of low paid jobs and higher unemployment levels. Over a period of 30 months, the consortium, led by Leonard Cheshire, will meet the three objectives, and sub-outputs, outlined in the terms of reference, by ensuring equity and inclusion are at the core of all our interventions: 1. To strengthen education to industry links at the institutional level prioritised to sectors key to county or national economic development. 2. To develop an enabling environment for a strong skills ecosystem through technical assistance and capacity building, including enhanced institutional capacity and capability. 3. To improve access to HE and TVET education for marginalised and unemployed youth. By meeting these objectives, KS4P will contribute to the realisation of the Kenya Vision 2030, as well as foster business engagement with UK companies to attract investment in the country. Leonard Cheshire, as a world-renowned inclusion NGO, is leading an exceptionally strong consortium, with an exemplified expertise and track record of interventions, which will be utilised to meet the challenges of bringing together the TVET/HE sector with industry to trial and develop innovative approaches to relevant, informed and cost-effective skills development. The core lead partners are the International Labour Organization (education to industry links and strong skills ecosystem), The Open University UK (digital approaches to learning), the Federation of Kenya Employers (industry links) and the Forum for African Women Educationists (gender responsive programming). As well as the core partners, the consortium is made up of three implementing and research partners: Institute for Employment Research at Warwick University (TVET/HE research), Edukans (TVET specialist), and Capital Strategies (employment training). Several university partners have been identified and consulted as downstream partners that will cover the key industry sectors and counties and facilitate links between industry, TVET and HE. The consortium has also secured pro bono involvement for KS4P from LC’s strategic partners, the World Bank and UNESCO, which is essential to maximising KS4P impact. The consortium is also focussed on securing partners that can support on Secondary Benefits, with for example, Microsoft and the Kenya Investment Authority confirming their support and involvement for this consortium.

Project symbol

KEN/20/02/LCH

Admin unit

CO-Dar es Salaam

Start date

15/12/2020

End date

31/03/2023

Total allocation

911726

Total expenditure

Status

Closed

904298

Development Partners

Leonard Cheshire Disability

Country/Countries

Kenya

Outcomes

Outcome 5: Skills and lifelong learning to facilitate access to and transitions in the labour market