NAIROBI, Kenya, April 7 – Standard Chartered Bank has invested Sh96.9 million towards a program that seeks to support disabled youths by identifying barriers that underpin the growth and progress of young jobseekers with disabilities.
The Futuremakers Employability Programme launched in partnership with Sightsavers and Light for the World will run for two years targeting 790 young jobseekers with disabilities including 150 jobseekers with a visual impairment.
Speaking during the launch of the program, Kariuki Ngari Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered said the bank is committed to promoting greater economic inclusion for disadvantaged young people even as he noted that more needs to be done to ensure that they are able to participate fully in the economy without discrimination or bias.
“Last year, we launched the Standard Chartered employability program in partnership with Light for the World which we are pleased to be continuing. We are glad to also continue our long-running partnership with Sightsavers by building on their work with job seekers and employers to increase disability inclusion in the workplace,” he said.
Through the initiatives, the three firms seek to work with like-minded actors to provide occupational mentorship opportunities including, internships, career talks and drills, apprenticeships, job shadowing, and recruitment opportunities.
Stephen Njenga, the Light for the World Country Director said the program is timely and will be critical in strengthening partnerships and investments toward helping students prepare for the job market, navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic and recover from the adverse impacts of the pandemic.
“Sightsavers is keen on fostering deep relationships with like-minded partners to ensure that we are advancing the needs of people with disabilities. The funding provided will also support the IT Bridge Academy, a project that is co-funded by GIZ; to train young people with disabilities to launch their careers in IT with a nine-month CISCO-certified training course followed by a three-month internship,” Moses Chege, Kenya country director, Sightsavers added.
