Elites from West Pokot County have embarked on measures to help reduce illiteracy level that is currently standing at 37%.
The elites led by West Pokot county speaker Catherine Mukenyang has started sponsoring children from humble background to further their studies.
Speaking yesterday when she donated personal effects to 15 students at Kapenguria polytechnic who had resumed school after mid term break, Mukenyang high levels of illiteracy level in the county is worrying.
“High illiteracy levels have hindered development and it may bar the government from achieving vision 20130 if we don’t put measure in place to reduce the number,” she said.
Mukenyang said she decided to fund the students to take different courses at the institution since the county lacked personnel with technical skills.
“Currently we are outsourcing persons with technical skills and yet we have technical institutions that help offer skills to our youths,” she said.
She thanked the government for embracing and supporting technical institutions to help support students who miss to join universities.
She said the county government had decided to give youths starter kit when they complete their course at the institution to help reduce cases of unemployment.
“Every student who completes her course at this institution will be given a starter kit to help them to be self employed,” she said.
Mukenyang said she was triggered to support the students since some of them had lost hope in life after attaining low grades and some had families to cater for with no permanent job.
She also said she is supporting young mother who had given birth before getting married and lacked anybody to help them.
One of the beneficiaries Glorious Cherubet said she completed her forth form in the 2013 and attained low grades that could not enable her join university.
“I had lost hope in life until early this year when madam speaker asked me to enroll at this institution to acquire skills that will help secure a job,” she said.
Cherubet who is currently taking food and beverage courses asked other youths who had not excelled in their national exams to enroll at the institution.
Kapenguria polytechnic principal Shadrack Kinyan said enrolment at the institution had doubled after national government decided to support technical institutions.
“this year we have enrolled over 200 students and initially we used to eroll less than 100 students,” he said.
