Inside President Ruto’s ‘Kuna Form’ Portal Launch: Can It Fix Kenya’s Youth Job Crisis?

At a recent event in Kakamega County, President William Ruto dropped some big news for Kenya’s youth. He announced a plan to create 113,000 new jobs across the country. To make it easy to find these jobs and business chances, he launched a new online tool called the “Kuna Form” portal.

Now, if you’ve ever been to any Kenyan party or wedding, you know “Kuna Form” is the popular phrase everyone says when they want to join the fun. It means “There is a form” or “There’s an opportunity to join.” And now, the government is using that same phrase to say, “Here’s your chance to get a job!” Funny how things work out, right?

The announcement came on International Youth Day, August 12, 2025, in Kakamega County. Ruto said this new effort will help fix one of Kenya’s biggest problems: youth unemployment. He wants young people to stop sitting around, waiting for a break, and start working.

Ruto talked about a project called Climate Worxs that has already put 45,000 young people to work cleaning up the Nairobi River. “This program will grow to other parts of Kenya,” he said. “Through more road and environment projects, we will create jobs for 113,000 youth, including 4,000 in Kakamega County.”

But wait, there’s more. Ruto announced another program, Kandarasi Mtaani, which will give jobs to 200,000 young people. Plus, the government is hiring 4,000 graduates to work on the Affordable Housing Program, where they’ll get experience with professional companies.

To make things even clearer, Ruto launched the Nyota Programme. This plan has four parts, designed to help young people in different ways.

First is Basic Skills Training. This is for youth aged 18 to 29 who finished Form 4 but don’t have specific skills. Ruto said, “90,000 young people will get training and a small salary for one year.” For the first six months, the government will pay transport costs to the training centers. Then, they will work as apprentices for six months and get a stipend.

Second is Certification for Skilled Workers. This helps 20,000 young people who already know a trade like plumbing or electrical work but don’t have official certificates. The government will test them and give certificates within one month.

Third is Support for Young Entrepreneurs. Here, 100,000 youth will get Ksh 50,000 each as a grant. They will also get mentors to help grow their businesses. Ruto said one million young people have already signed up for this support.

Fourth is Digital and Financial Literacy. This will help 600,000 young people learn how to use digital tools and manage money. They will learn how to apply for government jobs online and sell their goods on a marketplace. The government will also give Ksh 1 billion in funding for youth businesses.

To make all this simple to find, Ruto launched the Kuna Form portal. This website lists all the job and business chances for young people. It lets youth share opportunities and register for programs easily.

You can access the portal by emailing KunaForm@nyckenya.go.ke. No more long waits or confusion—just quick access to what you need.

Now, this plan sounds good. But we all know how Kenya loves shouting “Kuna Form” at every party, while the real forms for jobs take their own sweet time to show up. Let’s hope this portal is not just another party chant and actually helps young people find work. If it does, we might finally be able to say, “Kuna Form, and this time it’s for real!

Featured image via X screengrab