President William Ruto’s bid to to end Kenya’s unemployment problem is the reason why a programme absorbing skilled and semi-skilled youths into the Affordable Housing Scheme.
Government interns are set to leap big as the government is set to incorporate 5500 interns in the affordable housing project.
The interns are part of the government internship program currently underway, and they will be entitled to a monthly stipend from the consultants under the program, as well as the government, in order to facilitate them.
The internship programme is part of the government’s strategy to engage youths into constructive national building initiatives.
Figures from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics indicate that Kenya’s unemployment rate in 2025 showed significant youth challenges, with estimates placing youth unemployment at a high of 67% for ages 15-34, while overall rates hover around 12.7% (2024) or projected slightly lower (around 7.23%).
Hosting the commissioning of these interns at State House Nairobi, on Friday, January 23, 2026 president William Ruto has expressed gratitude for the project, saying the young professionals in the construction industry are an indication that the housing program is growing at a commendable rate.
We set out a plan to have a conversation and put ideas into a plan, a manifesto, and one of them was the housing program, and we are happy that today this is one of the indications that our manifestos are working and that it was about the issues that affect real people”, said Ruto.
While congratulating the interns, the president noted that, considering the interns are fresh from school, they are key in making meaningful development by tapping into adding human resources to the country, and that is the key essence of incorporating the interns into the housing project. This will help in tapping knowledge into our job market.
“We are allowing you to actualise your dreams and to sharpen what you learned in school.”
Ruto has added that the internship project by the government will be continuous to make sure that the country takes care of the huge number of graduates graduating from the universities. Ruto has noted that the government will continue creating jobs for Kenyans through government-funded projects to reduce the unemployment rate in the country.
We shall continue doing this because it’s what has been tried and tested, and it is what is working.
The interns are expected to be deployed in different areas where affordable housing is ongoing, and incorporate the interns in their areas of expertise, and will be working in real-life infrastructure projects. The interns will ensure that the projects assigned to them are actualized to the standards required by the set regulations.
