Kenya set to gain from Rockefeller's $100m digital jobs initiative

Courtesy of Business Daily: Kenya is among six African countries that will benefit from a job creation initiative launched by the Rockefeller Foundation. 

Dubbed Digital Jobs in Africa, the programme that will also benefit Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, Morocco and Egypt intends to create jobs through the use of technology.

The $100 million for the project will be channelled through the foundation’s Africa’s regional office that is based in Nairobi. It will run for seven years.

‘‘We will offer skills and expertise that will impact one million people in Africa through jobs and sustainable growth,’’ said Rockefeller Foundation regional managing director Mamadou Biteye when he visited Nation Media Group chief executive officer Linus Gitahi.

The selected countries all showed growth in usage of ICT and high rates of unemployment.

‘‘We will announce soon how much each country will get given on the amount set aside for the project,’’ Mr Biteye said.

The engagement will pursue avenues for large scale job creation in the ICT sector, including through outsourcing services to public and private sector.