The National Youth Service (NYS) will sign deal with State entities to hire NYS trainees as security personnel at a fee, Public Service Cabinet Secretary Justin Muturi has said.
Muturi said the government has unveiled a plan to commercialise NYS services for self-sustainability.
In the plan, NYS seeks to recruit 100,000 youths annually and establish commercial enterprises to make the service sustainable.
Appearing before the Senate Labour Committee on Budget Policy Statement (BPS), Muturi said that the agency would upgrade its training facilities to the level of technical and vocational education training institutes.
“The NYS is re-engineering its strategic agenda for commercial and enterprise development by establishing NYS commercial enterprises, a dedicated special purpose vehicle that will advance the sustainability agenda,” said Muturi.
He went on: “The service will enter into formal engagement with state entities to hire trainees as security personnel at a fee.”
The sustainability programme follows a directive by President William Ruto to NYS to recruit 100,000 into the service every year from 2027-28 financial year.
Through the plan, NYS targets national and county government agencies as its customers in its commercialisation plan.
“NYS of those years had some issues, and it was agreed that we have a break from that past. That was why it was necessary to engage professional bodies on a G-to-G basis,” he said.
NYS own heavy machinery, including tractors, compactors, excavators and trucks, which they outsource to the counties for collection of garbage, and gravelling of roads, among others.
In the 2025-26 financial year, NYS plans to recruit 40,000 youths in two courts, with a target of 100,000 recruits in 2027-28.
According to Muturi and Public Service and Human Development Principal Secretary Amos Gathecha, NYS will recruit 50,000 service men and women every six months in the expansion plan that would see several youths undergo the training.
In the first half of the current financial year, NYS trained 14,604 out of a target of 40,000 youth with paramilitary skills.
In addition, the service trained 28, 088 service men/women in technical and vocational skills out of a target of 42, 690
NYS undertakes paramilitary training as well as Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) of the members of the Service.
“To be able to achieve this, it is important to enhance the sustainability of the service. The president commissioned a team of economic advisors to assist the service in developing guidelines for re-engineering the NYS commercial department,” said Muturi.
NYS also sought the University of Nairobi (UoN), which has since developed business plans for the agency.
“The UoN, through the Enterprise and Services Limited, has developed eight business plans which have since been approved by NYS Council,” said Muturi.
They include agro-value additional enterprise, engineering and mechanization, hospitality services, textile and garment manufacturing, security services, construction and development services. According to NYS Director General James Tembur, the Youth service has collaborated with several counties for the provision of services.
“We are working very well with the counties. Currently, we have engaged some counties; they have hired machines from NYS,” said Tembur. He cited Machakos, Elgeyo Marakwet, and Kisumu where the service constructed a road with bitumen standard and Homa Bay where they constructed a dyke.
