GRADUATE UNEMPLOYMENT- WHO IS TO BLAME?

Bottomline: When graduates start moving around holding placards along major roads requesting for employment opportunities instead of curriculum vitae, definitely things are not well.

The economy is growing but is it growing fast enough to absorb the ever rising number of graduates churned out yearly by institutions of higher learning? They leave fresh from college, where they are cushioned from the harsh reality of life. Living in comfort zones courtesy of monthly upkeeps from parents and government subsidy through the Higher Education Loans Board, life seems comfortable until they graduate to the outside world where the scramble for formal employment becomes an eye opener of how tough life. There are limited employment opportunities compared to the number of graduates in individual sectors of the economy.

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The government is reportedly freezing employment across various departments in the public sector courtesy of the bulging public wage expenditure. This is giving the Sarah Serem led Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) sleepless nightmares as they seek to control public expenditure. When graduates start moving around holding placards along major roads requesting for job opportunities instead of curriculum vitae, it sets a clear indication of how things are, definitely not well.

According to Steve Biko Wafula, Chief Executive Officer of Soko Directory Investments, the business environment is tough but the government says the numbers are good and our economy is doing well. With the closure of Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the last four years an estimated 12.5 million people were left jobless, assuming that each SME had an average of five employees.

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The economy seems to be on recession as manifested by the massive layoffs as companies downsize their staff in an aim of maintaining profitability and reducing losses. Local companies that have laid off workers since 2014 include; Kenya Flourspar Company, Nation Media Group,Tata Chemicals Magadi, Royal Media Services, Family Bank, East African Breweries, Tuskys Supermarket, Telkom Kenya and Kenya Airways all citing that high operation costs necessitated the action. Other companies such as Eveready East Africa closed shop completely. Multinationals such as Cadbury Kenya, Hong Kong Banking Corporation, Bridgestone, Procter & Gamble, Coca Cola , Barclays Africa, Ericsson Kenya, Stanchart Kenya. Sidian Bank, Sameer Africa have laid off employees and relocated most of their operations to South Africa, Nigeria and Egypt in their bid to stay afloat in the African market.

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The list of companies closing down, relocating or laying off employees continues to grow daily as the economy ‘grows’. Accessing funds for entrepreneurship is another hurdle with numerous bureaucratic provisions that make the youth give up in pursuit of seed capital thus remaining with their business ideas in idea form, no conceptualization nor actualization. Times are tough; they might be tougher in days to come.