In the sun-soaked landscapes of Kilifi County, the impending hurdle of unemployment has cast a shadow over the dreams of its youth.
Unemployment, akin to unfinished dreams, has left behind stories of diminished productivity and a surge in vices like drug and substance abuse, which have consumed most of the youth.
Tired of grappling with the job market, which cannot absorb all of them due to government bureaucracy and financial constraints, most youths have ventured into small and medium-scale businesses as a course towards self-reliance.
KNOB Digital, a marketing platform, is devoted to uniting, empowering, and linking young entrepreneurs to a broader audience. It has created a glimmer of hope for the youths who face lack of mentorship, scarcity of resources, space, and markets for their products.
Started by young and determined entrepreneurs to network businesses, the youthful entrepreneurs say that they have made tremendous strides in terms of sales.
Emmanuel Baraka, the manager at KNOB Digital, says that the platform has been a pillar of hope in terms of creating brands for small businesses in Kilifi, primarily by creating a link for the sale of their products.
Baraka says that the platform has, in most cases, crafted digital experiences and provided support to most businesses.
“We are a team of professionals dedicated to crafting digital experiences for entrepreneurs who aim at reaching a larger audience to sell their products,” said Baraka.
Baraka explains that the team is made up of like-minded youth from Kilifi, committed to creating a digital space using digital skills to salvage the youth from the shackles of unemployment.
As he explains, KNOB is a digital umbrella, working to increase brand awareness for entrepreneurs.
Conquering a Digital Future
Building on its vision statement, Here is the Future, KNOB Digital aims to exploit digital sites to create a niche in marketing.
“We believe that based on the kind of audience that most of the entrepreneurs aim at, we project a more reach on the internet,” said Baraka.
However, KNOB Digital uses a blended effort of digital marketing as well as physical sales, which are mostly done through trade fairs.
Influencing the youth to entrepreneurship through trade fairs
Baraka explains that, as KNOB Digital, holding trade fairs has been critical in influencing the youth to take up entrepreneurship roles.
He explains that through this, they have reached out to more youth who have shown interest in entrepreneurship by seeing products and interacting with fellow young entrepreneurs.
“At the trade fairs, we have interacted with more customers as well as youths who have turned out to show interest in becoming entrepreneurs,” said Baraka.
Bridging the market gap
He notes that by attending the first trade fairs in 2023, at the Mekatilili trade fair, they have been able to meet prospective buyers and even more people showing interest in entrepreneurship.
He says that most youths have ideas about marketing becoming the only gap, which KNOB Digital aims to bridge.
“Most entrepreneurs get stuck, especially when they want to sell because they do not know where to start from or whom to sell to. With the existence of KNOB Digital, we believe that the market gap is already bridged,” said the manager.
Mitigating challenges
Evelyn Kimori, who is the marketing coordinator of KNOB Digital, said however, that there is a need for the government to identify such firms and use them as a bridge for identifying hard-working youths for rewards and grants.
She noted that the youth expect much from the government, which seems to be overwhelmed by the larger number compared to the few existing opportunities.
“I believe that there are many programs that the government has for the youth, but very few reach us. In this regard, I recommend that there be a proper communication between the two entities as far as employment is concerned,” said Evelyn.
Mercy Ndungwa, founder, Mwendo’s Honey Farm who faulted the county government for failure to support entrepreneurs, says that lack of the same has made most entrepreneurs jilt out of their creativity due to limited resources.
She however, says that through platforms such as KNOB Digital and the Nunua Kilifi trade fair, they sales have been boosted.
“So far, the government has not done so much in terms of supporting the youthful entrepreneurs but we appreciate the little efforts,” she noted.
Appeal for training and exposure
Ms Ndungwa whose form deals in the production of honey and products in Makueni, said that there is a need for the County government to organize training for young entrepreneurs which will make them gain skills in terms of the market as well as give them a chance to convince the county government to support them.
“As entrepreneurs, we need to see more support programs coming from the county government as far as training and exposure is concerned because it is from such that we will be made more viable and vibrant,” says Ndungwa.
Bureaucratic county grants
The young entrepreneurs have also faulted the county government for failing to widen the base in terms of grants, which they say are based on bureaucracy, corruption, and unclear ways of awarding them.
Ndungwa who has been in the entrepreneurship space for over one year now, says that she has not benefited from the Wezesha Grant, an initiative of Kilifi County to support young business owners in the county.
“Personally, I want to say that there is a lot of bureaucracy or lack of awareness about the county grants,” she said.
However, she encouraged the entrepreneurs to make inquiries more often by visiting the concerned offices for the grants.
However, Dr. Dama Masha, executive council member for Sports, Youths Gender and Culture, Kilifi County said that the government is set to organize trade fairs in order to identify entrepreneurs that qualify for the grants.
Her sentiments were echoed by Agneta Karemo, Chief Officer for Gender, Culture and Social Services in Kilifi County,saying that the county is set to organize meetings with donors to add more grants to accommodate every entrepreneur.
IAN BYRON 
KTMN Reporter