By Anne Sunkuyia
KenGen has continued to establish partnerships with like -minded institutions and industry players that would facilitate research and development, training in geothermal and other renewable energy sources. Recently, the Geothermal Training Centre, held a knowledge sharing forum for the ILO’s PPDPs in Kenya, Somalia and Zambia.
The ILO and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) are working together in Kenya with the PPDP project “Inclusive growth through decent work in the Great Rift Valley”, initially in the geothermal energy sector in 2018 and later also in other sectors of manufacturing, hospitality, construction, agriculture/horticulture, solar energy and education/vocational training.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) requested for KenGen’s contribution towards the Inclusive Growth through Decent Work in the Great Rift Valley project which is a PPDP project whose overall objective is to contribute to poverty reduction and better living conditions through decent jobs and access to rights among local communities in Narok and Nakuru Counties.
The project’s overall goal is achieved through project objectives that are structured around capacity building for better skills to be provided by the vocational training centres that will ensure trainees secure decent jobs and thus empowerment.
KenGen was selected to provide access to internships and employment opportunities for youth among the target population in Narok and Nakuru Counties.
In a bid to form partnerships for mutual benefit and in support of EASTRIP project, the Geothermal Training partnered with four Vocational Training Centres of Narok, N/Enkare, Maiela and Mirera that are under the Public-Private Development Partnership project (PPDP) within Narok and Nakuru Counties. These institutions are aware that there is a mismatch results from skilled graduates from the lack of cooperation between the training and learning sectors. This framework of cooperation will, therefore, ensure that the students upon completion of the programs/courses are sufficiently trained and competent to join the job market.
The Geothermal Training Centre will also facilitate tailor made structured entrepreneur/business skills trainings and other vocational technical courses in line with ILO standardized training packages at highly subsidized rates to trainees identified by the PPDP project. The Centre also provides internship and attachment opportunities at our institution installations.
The workshop provided an opportunity for the three ILO projects to exchange experiences, learn about solutions that work, and identify good practices that facilitate effective management of partnerships. It was also an avenue to learn from KenGen contributions to the projects’ success especially on skills development and internships.