The government is strengthening technical and vocational education to enhance the country’s capacity to offer practical training, President William Ruto has said.

The objective is to use the power of technical vocational education and training (TVET) to push the potential of young people to positively contribute to economic growth.

He pointed out that the Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA) was designed to accelerate economic growth by investing in critical pillars that create employment for millions of skilled youth.

“As we implement policies, programmes and projects which create jobs for the youth, we must simultaneously equip millions of young Kenyans with the education, training and skills necessary to enhance their productivity in a dynamic, globalised and competitive labour market,” he said.

He made the remarks on Tuesday during the centenary celebrations of TVET in Kenya at the Nyeri National Polytechnic.

This financial year, the government has allocated KSh28.3 billion to TVET institutions.

“We intend to keep raising the budgetary allocation in future until we achieve an optimal level of investment,” he said.

The government is also recruiting 2,000 TVET tutors, with the goal of increasing the total number to 4,000.

The President announced that China has approved KSh13 billion for Kenya to support 70 TVET institutions with state-of-the-art equipment.

Present were Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu, Nyeri Governor Mutahi Kahiga, MPs and MCAs.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of President of the Republic of Kenya.

APO Group, the leading Pan-African communications consultancy and press release distribution service, is excited to announce a new content partnership with Capital Ethiopia (www.CapitalEthiopia.com). This collaboration will see all text, images, video, and audio content distributed by APO Group in Entertainment, Business, Economy and Sports, featured on Capital’s platforms in English, extending the reach of African news and stories.

Capital is the longest-established private English newspaper in Ethiopia. It is a weekly business newspaper that provides news, entertainment, music, fashion, and sports information. It is published once a week on Sundays and is also available daily on its website and social media channels.

This partnership represents a significant step forward in APO Group’s commitment to enhancing the dissemination of news and information across the African continent. APO Group’s extensive content network encompasses news from over 300 multinational companies operating in Africa, major international institutions, sports organizations, and African governments, providing a comprehensive view of events and developments on the continent.

The collaboration between APO Group and Capital Ethiopia is aligned with both organizations’ shared vision to promote African stories, highlight positive developments, and contribute to changing the narrative about Africa.

“We are delighted to partner with Capital Ethiopia, a respected player in the African media landscape,” said Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard, Founder and Chairman of APO Group. “This partnership allows us to reach a bigger audience and ensures that quality news content is readily available to those seeking valuable insights about Africa.”

“We believe that this collaboration will greatly benefit our readers, as it provides access to a wealth of news and information from diverse sources across the continent,” stated Groum Abate, Chief Editor of Capital Ethiopia. “Together with APO Group, we are committed to fostering a deeper understanding of Africa and its contributions to the global stage.”

In addition to its presence on Capital Ethiopia’s website, the content distributed by APO Group is guaranteed to be featured on more than 300 African news websites and international platforms such as Bloomberg Terminal, Thomson Reuters Eikon, Lexis Nexis, and Factiva.

APO Group and Capital Ethiopia are united in their commitment to elevate the narratives about African Entertainment and provide valuable insights to a global audience.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Capital Ethiopia.

For more information, please contact:
Media Partnership contact: 
APO Group 
muriel.tekou@apo-opa.com

Capital Ethiopia
groumabate@gmail.com

Follow Capital Ethiopia on:
Facebook: https://apo-opa.co/4aaixld
Twitter: https://apo-opa.co/3TC2AwW
LinkedIn: https://apo-opa.co/3TT8H1p
Instagram: https://apo-opa.co/3TxoK3t

About APO Group:
Founded in 2007, APO Group (www.APO-opa.com) is the leading pan-African communications consultancy and press release distribution service. We assist private and public organizations in sharpening their reputation and increasing their brand equity in target countries across Africa. Our role as a trusted partner is to leverage the power of media and build bespoke strategies that enable organizations to produce a real, measurable impact in Africa and beyond. The trust and recognition granted to APO Group by global and multinational companies, governments, and NGOs inspires us to continuously enhance our value proposition within Africa to better cater to our clients’ needs. Among our prestigious clients: Facebook, Dangote Group, Nestle, GE, NBA, Canon, Coca-Cola, DHL, Marriott Group, Ecobank, Siemens, Standard Chartered, Orange, Jack Ma Foundation, African Development Bank, World Health Organization, Islamic Development Bank, Liquid Telecom, Rotary International, Kaspersky, Greenpeace… 

Headquarters: Lausanne, Switzerland | Offices in Senegal, Dubai and Hong Kong 

For further information, please visit our website: https://www.APO-opa.com 

About CAPITAL ETHIOPIA:
Capital is ‘The paper that promotes free enterprise’. Established in 1998, Capital is the Ethiopian weekly business newspaper published and distributed by Crown Publishing Plc.

Capital also known as Capital Ethiopia is a paper published once a week, on Sundays, and on the hours daily on its website and social media channel. Capital is business, economy, entertainment, music, fashion, and sports information with the latest breaking news and videos.

Headquarters: Bole, behind Rwanda Embassy, P.O.Box 95, code 1110, Addis Ababa

For more information, please visit the website: www.CapitalEthiopia.com

Kenya’s Water and Sanitation Investors Conference 2024, held in the capital, Nairobi, concluded with a call for accelerated investment towards universal access to water and sanitation by 2030.

The March 6-8 conference underscored the need for collaboration to support governments in bridging the financing gap through private sector funding, blended financing from commercial banks, Development Finance Institutions, and capital markets. Kenya requires about Ksh 995 billion (around $7.5 billion) to achieve universal access to water and sanitation by 2030.

Mecuria Assefaw, Manager of the African Development Bank Water Security and Sanitation Division, highlighted the importance of diversifying investments in the sector to meet the financing gap. He stressed the significance of Private Public Partnerships in ensuring water and sanitation for all.

“By facilitating collaboration for PPPs, we unlock a new door for investments and capital,” he said, adding that closing the financing gap in the sector requires long-term sustained efforts.

Assefaw referenced successful PPP initiatives like the Rwanda’s Kigali Bulk Water Supply Project, co-funded by the Bank alongside other development partners, which has significantly improved water services for half a million people.

Julius Korir, Principal Secretary in Kenya’s Ministry of Water, Sanitation and Irrigation, affirmed the political goodwill in Kenya for PPP projects in the water sector, noting efforts to align the Water Act with the PPP législation to opérationnalise such projects.

The conference emphasized the importance of creating an enabling investment environment through good governance and regulatory structures. Emily Kilongi, a Senior Water and Sanitation Officer at the Bank, stressed that proper policy, institutional, and regulatory arrangements are vital for facilitating investments in activities that contribute to water security and safe sanitation.”  

The Bank was represented in other high-level sessions, including the Catchment to Tap and Climate Change Investment Opportunities. Emmanuel Olet, Chief Water Development Officer, and Benson Bumbe Nkhoma, Principal Water Resources Management and Development Officer in the Water Development and Sanitation Department, called for innovative ways of conserving catchment areas while engaging with communities, given the emerging and growing challenges resulting from population growth and expanding land use.

Edwin Mwangi, a Private Sector Specialist with the Bank, reiterated the critical role of the private sector in implementing the construction of water sector infrastructure and bridging the funding gap to achieve Sustainable Development Goals 6 through blended finance solutions.

The African Development Bank co-sponsored the conference, which was organized by Kenya’s Water Sector Trust Fund. It brought together stakeholders from various sectors. The Bank’s ongoing active portfolio in the country currently stands at $3.98 billion, including investments in critical infrastructure (transport, water and sanitation, and energy) accounting for 74%.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of African Development Bank Group (AfDB).

10th Cohort of the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme (https://www.TonyElumeluFoundation.org) Announced; Over 50 business sectors from farming to technology represented; 20,000 entrepreneurs from 54 countries across Africa funded in 10 years – doubling original target.

The Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), the leading philanthropy empowering young African entrepreneurs from all 54 African countries, has announced the successful entrepreneurs in its tenth selection for the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme.

This new cohort brings to 20,000, the number of young African entrepreneurs who have received funding, mentoring, and capacity-building support from the Foundation, double the initial commitment. The Tony Elumelu Foundation has disbursed US$100,000,000 directly to young African entrepreneurs, who have created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs, contributing significantly to Africa’s economic growth and development. 45% of these beneficiaries are women, reiterating the Foundation’s commitment to gender inclusion and equity.

Past entrepreneurs selected across Africa include:

Stella Sigana, founder of Alternative Waste Technologies from Kenya, produces fuel briquettes by converting organic and charcoal waste from slum settlements, and dedicates a portion of the revenues to providing education, skills training, and job placement for adolescent girls and young women aged 18-24. Since her selection, Stella has created 12 jobs, generated over $79,000 in revenue, and recycled over 500 tons of waste into fuel briquettes for cooking. Her business model has also empowered hundreds of women entrepreneurs in slum settlements in Kenya, enabling them to build businesses by selling her products directly to their communities, thus significantly increasing household income and wellbeing.
Vital Sounouvou from Benin is the founder of Exportunity, an e-commerce platform that promotes export opportunities for Africans by connecting producers with traders. Through Exportunity, Sounouvou has engaged over 750 clients, and built a database of 85,000 companies trading with Africa. He has employed 32 people.
Nora Chaynane, a Moroccan entrepreneur, and founder of Shine Space, a socio-educational initiative aimed at bridging the knowledge gap and guiding students toward the right career path, helps young Moroccans develop technical and interpersonal skills beyond school curriculum requirements. Through Shine Space, Nora has upskilled and capacitised over 2,500 young Moroccans.

Since inception in 2010, the Tony Elumelu Foundation has pioneered an innovative approach to seeding, capacitising and networking young entrepreneurs across Africa. Drawing directly from Founder Tony Elumelu’s entrepreneurial journey, the Foundation democratises luck, spreads opportunity, in a sector agnostic approach, and has developed a bespoke infrastructure that reaches every country in Africa. The Foundation is driven by our Founder’s philosophy of Africapitalism, which advocates that the private sector, particularly entrepreneurs, must play the pivotal role in Africa’s development.

The robust ability of the Foundation to reach entrepreneurs across geographies and sectors has enabled it to conduct innovative partnerships with the European Union (EU), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the US Government via the United States African Development Foundation (USADF), the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS), the French Development Agency (AFD), the German Development Finance Institution (DEG), the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the African Development Bank (AfDB), Sèmè City Development Agency, and Google, with bespoke programmes including targeting female empowerment and growth in fragile states. Building on its existing partnership with Sèmè City Development Agency, the Tony Elumelu Foundation will fund an additional 100 young entrepreneurs from Benin Republic in 2024.

Tony O. Elumelu shared: “As we mark a decade of impact, I am immensely proud of the incredible journey we have embarked on. Our entrepreneurs represent the driving force behind Africa’s economic transformation, and their resilience, determination, and innovation continue to inspire us all. The future of our continent is brighter because of their efforts.”

As part of the Tony Elumelu Foundation’s commitment to support young Africans, the following ongoing opportunities are currently open for applications from young entrepreneurs across Africa on TEFConnect (https://TEFConnect.com/):

Women Entrepreneurship For Africa (WE4A), a partnership between the European Union, GIZ and TEF

Aguka Entrepreneurship Programme, a partnership between UNDP and TEF in Rwanda

African entrepreneurs are encouraged to apply to these initiatives to receive training, mentorship, access to networks, and funding.

To learn more about the Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme “Decade of Impact” please see here (https://apo-opa.co/3IULYeS). The success stories of these beneficiaries can be found here (https://apo-opa.co/3VzIx4X), and a full breakdown of the Foundation’s beneficiaries across Africa can be found here (https://apo-opa.co/3TOQCkS). For more insights into our impactful initiatives, milestones, and the transformative stories of entrepreneurs across Africa, delve into our annual reports here (https://apo-opa.co/43xk2r6).

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of The Tony Elumelu Foundation.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Moyo Awotile
Head, Marketing&Corporate Communications
+234-809-975-1482
moyo.awotile@tonyelumelufoundation.org

About the Tony Elumelu Foundation:
The Tony Elumelu Foundation is the leading philanthropy empowering a new generation of African entrepreneurs, driving poverty eradication, catalysing job creation across all 54 African countries, and increasing women economic empowerment. Since the launch of the TEF Entrepreneurship Programme in 2015, the Foundation has provided access to over 1.5 million young Africans on its digital hub, TEFConnect, and disbursed over USD$100 million in direct funding to 20,000 young African women and men, who have collectively created over 400,000 direct and indirect jobs.