Members of Parliament have questioned the government’s spending on Youth Empowerment Centres that remain non-operational, demanding answers on why more facilities are being constructed before those already completed are put to use.
The issue came under scrutiny on Tuesday when the National Assembly Public Accounts Committee examined Auditor-General reports covering the 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 financial years on the State Department for Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports.
The committee, chaired by Butere MP Tindi Mwale, questioned whether taxpayers were receiving value for money from the programme, given that a significant number of completed centres remain without staff or operational programmes.
According to the Auditor-General’s report, only 156 of the 290 planned Youth Empowerment Centres had been constructed.
However, the committee was told that most of the completed centres were yet to become fully operational, raising questions over the government’s approach to the programme and the use of public funds allocated to youth empowerment.
Mwale questioned the decision to continue constructing additional centres before addressing the challenges facing facilities that are already complete.
“Will Kenyans really get value for money if finances are pumped into the construction of more youth centres? Isn’t it illogical to continue with the construction of more centres without first operationalising the existing ones?” Mwale asked.
The committee also raised concerns over the continued underfunding of the youth empowerment programme, with Teso South MP Mary Emaase, Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo and Lugari MP Nabii Nabwera questioning the State Department on the challenges affecting the centres.
Principal Secretary for the State Department, Fikirini Jacobs, attributed the non-operationalisation of some of the centres to funding constraints and understaffing.
Jacobs told the committee that efforts had been made to activate some of the facilities through partnerships with other government departments.
He said 25 Youth Empowerment Centres had been operationalised through a partnership with the Ministry of ICT to establish ICT hubs.
The development comes as Parliament continues to scrutinise government expenditure and implementation of programmes intended to benefit young people across the country.
The committee is now seeking a comprehensive picture of the status of the centres to determine the extent of the implementation challenges.
Mwale directed the Principal Secretary to submit a detailed status report on all Youth Empowerment Centres across the country for further consideration by the committee.
The report is expected to provide details on the centres that have been constructed, those that are operational, staffing levels and the extent to which the facilities are being utilised.
The committee’s scrutiny followed the Auditor-General’s findings on the implementation of the youth empowerment programme for the two financial years under review.
