Economic Effects of Youth Enterprise Development Fund on Beneficiaries in Peri-Urban Settings in Kenya

Depite Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) being established to enhance youths access to social and financial empowerment, little was known on the extent to which these funds had translated into better living conditions for youths in Kapseret Constituency. This paper is an output of a study that sought to evaluate the economic effects of Youth Enterprise Development Funds on living conditions among the youths in study area. The target population of the study were 428 youths who had benefited from the Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) between the year 2015 and 2020. A sample size of 200 youths participated in the study. Purposive and proportionate random sampling techniques were employed. Data was collected using an interview schedule, in-depth interviews and observation methods. Both qualitative and quantitative techniques of data analysis were employed. Economically, the YEDF had injected income in form of loans for youths in the study area (100%), 96.5% of the respondents owned asset and that the value of their asset had also increased, YEDF had improved youths’ income (95.5%), 94.5% had started their own businesses and projects, YEDF had helped to create alternative pathways of employment (97%) and 98% had reduced dependency on traditional job market. In conclusion, Youth Enterprise Development Fund had improved the economic aspects of the living conditions of the youth beneficiaries in the study area. However, this was yet to be felt by the majority of the youths that have not been reached out by the YEDF. We recommend the need for more community education and sensitization on YEDF in order to enroll more youths. The national government should increase funding to the YEDF and improve on loan disbursement timeline.