Jina Langu ni Alfred M. Mwakio

Published On: April 6th, 2016
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Your name and what do you do?

My Name is Alfred M. Mwakio a Kenyan, and a proud son of the Island Mombasa.

I work with the County Government of Mombasa in the Ministry of Youth, Gender & Sports as the Executive Assistant or PA -CECM

How long have you worked at Ministry of Youth, Gender and Sports- Mombasa County?

In general I started working with the Ministry of Transport & Infrastructure for a year then when my Boss Hon. Mohammed Abbas was reshuffled to the Ministry of Youth, Gender and Sports he tagged himself with me. So I have served the YGS department for a year and the County Government of Mombasa for 2 years and half now.

Tell us three things that you have accomplished in the last two years?

The 3 things I have accomplished is;-

1) I initialized or I’m the Co- Founder of a movement dubbed #WordToTheYouth my brain child initiative whereby the objectives are multi sectoral movement for a National Transformation aiming;-

*To promote national cohesion

*Mentoring/Inspiring

*Nurture/ Equip/ Develop value based leaders

*Skills development for improved Livelihoods & sustainable development

*Social economic empowerment of the youth, women & PWD’s

2) I’m the first Youth to write a proposal that will change the system in which the Youth, Women & People living with disabilities will represent themselves to the Government bodies and will serve as a bridge between the two. Through the dossier it will give them platform to stand tall and be counted as they get to taste the piece of the County cake from the grassroots level fairly.

3) I serve a good example to my fellow youth as a ROLE MODEL through my life history, humble beginning and life experience as I raise the ball a notch higher and set the standard for my fellow Youth to follow suit.

What quality of yours or personal trait matters the most in your career?

My personal trait that matters the most in my career is LOYALTY, INTEGRITY & REPETITION of my work which is to deliver good services to all citizens without being bias of the status background, religion, race, tribe and etc.

The Art scene (Poetry/spoken word/Painting/Plays) in Mombasa has grown in the past year, what is the Ministry planning on promoting artist?

I won’t give much detail to what the Department is planning on promoting artist because its beyond my job description & will be bridging protocol but as a County Staff and a Youthful  Leader I can confirm proudly that the County Government of Mombasa under our Governor, role model and Mentor H.E the Governor Hassan Ali Joho has allocated a good budget this financial year 2015/2016 to the Department and has  made sure there is sustainable and equitable social economic empowerment of youth, women & PWD’s so as to nurture talents & create platforms as we empower them with entrepreneurship skills to be job creators other than job seekers.

High number of Youth in Mombasa are jobless, is that due to no Jobs, or lack of skills (Education)?

The high rate of unemployed youth in Mombasa County according to my research is due to lack of Skills.

As a resident and youthful leader from County 001 I’m proud to have come from this magical Island with a rich history full of exploration, spices trading, dynamic battles and a Cosmopolitan and ever expanding County with access to an extensive labor face. Mombasa boasts a functional literacy rate of 96% in its youthful population, nearly half of whom have travelled to Mombasa to find work or study. Mombasa is a home to multiple universities and vocational training centers. While well-established industries have created pools of skilled labor.

Let me break the ice berg and name a few reasons that cause high number of unemployment in this County;-

* Rural -Urban migration influx of unemployed youth from other Counties to Mombasa in such of greener pastures. Note;- Mombasa is a Metropolitan County.

*Lack of proper information that is being offered by the labor market

*High numbers of school leavers Vis a Vis in relation to the number of job opportunity in the labor market

*Issue of Attitude most youth don’t want to do manual jobs they are looking for white collar jobs which are less available in the market.

* Another factor is that the Government policy which are not conducive to the growth of local industries e.g. High Taxation, Neema

*Lack of credit facilities to the Youth coz of security or guarantee.

Do you think Women entrepreneurs have increased in Mombasa? And are they marketing themselves well?

I think Women Entrepreneurs have increased in Mombasa, a good example is most of the tendering are handled by Women and even bigger business companies. The girl child education in Mombasa has empowered many with skills that they implement. As we have also seen the Women are becoming family bread winners in most families and ladies taking the jobs that long were perceived to be for men like Job supervision, Directors, photographers and many more.

In terms of marketing I think they are on the right track depending with the business but I believe women do better marketing than Men.

Where do you see Mombasa in the next 10 years?

In the next 10 years I see Mombasa as a Major Business Hub.

As we all know Mombasa has been known as ‘the city of Merchants’ due to its location, strategical placed midway between South Africa and the Middle East, So I believe in the next 10 years Mombasa being the gateway to East & Central Africa will be the Major Business Hub coz it’s on the right channel of becoming the most efficient and expansive transportation network in the region through long standing trade and transportation hub which is a testament to the healthy infrastructure that allows for the ready transport of goods to and from Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Eastern DRC, Northern Tanzania, South Sudan, Somalia and Ethiopia.

County Government of Mombasa through our able Governor H.E Hassan Ali Joho is constantly working to expand its business services for Local and International markets through different sustainable projects that benefit & gives a priority to its resident ‘Normal Mwananchi’

Where do you see yourself 10 years from now?

In the next 10 years from now through God, I see a bright future coz I have dedicated my time to giving back to the community whereby I’m learning more that will help me in the nearby future.

My Work speaks for itself, the rest I live it to God.

Parting shot

My message is very simple plant a seed in a fertile soil, water it with carefulness and let it grow in a favorable environment and you will get a strong, fruitful, and everlasting tree. Similarly, Youth who are in an encouraging environment, surrounded by a strong support system, when given the chance can unleash their potential on the whole world. #WordToTheYouth

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