Tea farming in Kenya has managed to achieve higher quality standards resulting in consistently higher auction prices. Before the pandemic, the industry was the largest employer in the private sector, with more than 80,000 people working on the estate and about 3 million people earning their livelihood from the sector.

James Finlays has had an impressive history of being the largest levy payer in Kericho County and the company has heavily invested in training of staff to enhance productivity such as; Skills Upgrading, Apprenticeship and Industrial attachments.

There is increasing recognition of the key role that industrial training through the afore-mentioned pathways can play in enabling trainees acquire the relevant competencies to facilitate their transition from the world of education to the world of work. In their modern form, these pathways typically combine systematic and long-term workplace training with classroom instruction to enable trainees acquire the full range of competencies needed for a particular occupation.

Quality apprenticeships can benefit jobseekers and workers of all ages who, due to changes in the labour market or job requirements, find themselves in need of re-training or up-skilling. Quality apprenticeships have the potential to re-tool people with the relevant competencies to navigate the challenges in the world of work throughout their lives, they are considered to be an important element of the system of lifelong learning.  These apprenticeships also have the potential to improve the productivity and competitiveness of enterprises such as James Finlays.

It is on this premise that the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Hon. Simon Chelugui visited James Finlays in Kericho on 6th August 2021, accompanied by top Ministry officials as well as NITA officials led by NITA Kisumu Centre Manager Ms. Mary Wamoko and Head, Industry Based Accreditation and Training Mr. Peter Njiru.

“In Kenya, NITA is at the forefront of these efforts, and has carried out reviews, expanded and re-designed its existing Industrial Training programmes, reviewed and revised learning outcomes and curricula which will significantly contribute to companies such as James Finlays overall production, skill-wise”, stated the CS during his remarks.

Finlays has also benefitted from Curriculum development in courses such as Mechanical Tea Harvester training where NITA has been a facilitator to ensure Trainers who are brought on board are competent and drawn from various Training Organizations.James Finlays has also been at the forefront of ensuring that statutory trainings are among reimbursable trainings in NITA.

The BIG FOUR AGENDA is expected to contribute to the realization ofthe envisioned social economic development goals of Vision 2030 as well as the UN Sustainable Development Goals [SDGs]. The tea farming and floriculture industry continues to attract investors due to solid infrastructure, favourable climate, global-positioning of Kenya and a productive workforce.

The re-establishment of the NITA Sector Training Committees has given an added impetus to the drive for comprehensive regulation of the Agricultural Sector growth in Kenya. The streamlining of NITA’s Industrial Training Levy operations also means that you will experience less down time as far as approvals and training cost re-imbursements are concerned.

Finlays is contributing towards the National Development Agenda and has supported NITA through targeted and sustained collaborations where levy payments and curriculum development is concerned.Through partnerships such as this, NITA is also currently working to implement measures/strategies to ensure sustained roll-out of Recognition of Prior Learning with a focus on staff and stakeholder sensitizations, development of learning outcomes for all trades/levels and development of relevant re-tooling structures to ensure its continual and effective rollout for purposes of quality in industrial training.

Partnerships are crucial in enhancing our skills system especially in the midst of the pandemic we are currently facing which will in turn raise employment levels in the country while at the same time contributing to poverty reduction and economic development, tenets that inspired the development of the Government’s Big Four Agenda.

PLAN International is implementing the Hyundai Dream Centre Project in Kenya through a partnership with NITA and Salvador Caetano Kenya. This is the 7th Dream Centre in the world. The overall goal of the Project is to increase access to demand driven skills and decent jobs for young men and women in Kenya

The Project which commenced in February 2021,  is aimed at creating a Centre of Excellence that will not only exist to empower the young people with the advanced knowledge in motor vehicle auto-electrics, but also make it stand out in the entire country as the best and most admired institution for industrial training. The Official Launch of the Hyundai Dream Centre took place on Thursday 24th June 2021, at NITA Athi River Centre.

The Korean Ambassador to Kenya H.E Choi Yeonghan made his first visit to the Centre on 7th October, 2021. The Ambassador was accompanied by the Cabinet Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Hon. Simon Chelugui, and the Principal, State Department for Labour, Eng. Peter Tum, who was represented by Secretary Administration, Dr. William Kiprono. Also present at the Visit were PLAN International Country Director Ms. Kate Vorley and Salvador Caetano Kenya Managing Director, Mr. Pedro Campos.

 “The automobile industry is a pillar of the global economy and a main driver of macro-economic growth and stability, and technological advancement in both developed and developing countries, spanning many adjacent industries. The core automotive industry (vehicle and parts makers) supports a wide range of business segments, both upstream and downstream, along with adjacent industries. This leads to a multiplier effect on growth and economic development.” remarked the Cabinet Secretary during his speech at the event.

The Chairman, the National Industrial Training Board Dr.Kamau Gachigi as well as Director General Mr. Stephen Ogenga and Management and Staff of the Authority were present during the event.This partnership will be a significant milestone in ensuring that the Authority’s agenda of promoting quality, relevance and inclusivity in education and quality skills development as enablers for socio- economic development and global competitiveness will be achieved ad will supplement the Authority’s sustained push towards the realization of an adequately trained work force for Kenya.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) players in the country including Qualification Awarding Institutions (QAI’s) like NITA are required to roll out RPL for their sub-sectors guided by Presidential Directive on RPL issued on 1st June 2021 as well as the national policy and the implementation guidelines.

The National Industrial Training Authority held the official launch of the December Government Trade Test series on Friday 10th December 2021 at the Kenya Industrial Training Institute in Nakuru.

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