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Benefits of Youth Livelihoods Security Empowerment Initiatives Among the Youth in Embakasi Central Constituency, Kenya

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the benefits of youth livelihoods security empowerment initiatives Embakasi Central Constituency, Kenya. The objective of the study was to evaluate the benefits of livelihoods security empowerment initiatives in Embakasi Central Sub-County. The study was guided by the Critical Social Theory of Youth Empowerment which highlights the need for and essence of youth empowerment. A case study design was used for the research. The study targeted all the youth groups based in Embakasi Central Constituency. Sample size was therefore drawn from among the approximate 22,548 youth in Embakasi Central using the Slovin’s sampling formula.This gave a sample size of 393 respondents. The youth were sampled using systematic random sampling technique while the key informants were purposively selected. Primary data was collected through interview method using researcher administered questionnaires. Secondary data was collected through extensive literature review of journals and reports on youth empowerment. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics with the help of SPSS version 23 while qualitative data using content analysis. The study findings revealed that, benefits were felt by the respondents with 84.2% saying they had been greatly impacted by the initiatives. Barriers in accessing youth funds were rampant (76.4%) with the bottlenecks put by the government being the major challenge and others such as corruption, inadequate funding and lack of access hindering improvement of livelihoods. The major conclusion of the study was that youth empowerment initiatives were very prevalent in Embakasi Central Constituency, which had in turn led to livelihood security among the youth. However, accessing these initiatives encountered some barriers including corruption, inadequate funds and inadequate vocational skills among other barriers. The study recommended that funds should be channelled to youth empowerment programs at every ward and the challenges that they faced be addressed. Key words: Youth, Livelihoods security and Empowerment initiatives
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