Category: Vocational Training

UJUZI MANYATTANI ACCREDITED

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We are thrilled and deeply honoured to share that our Ujuzi Manyattani initiative, now formally established as Ujuzi Manyattani Training Institute (UMTI), has been accredited by the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA). UMTI formally joins the ranks of recognised technical and vocational colleges nationwide.

This achievement is the culmination of 7 years of relentless dedication towards providing quality vocational training. Ujuzi Manyattani began as a flagship mobile vocational training program under MashinaniWORKS, with the mission to break down geographical, financial, and social barriers for women and youth locked out of formal education.

With this accreditation, UMTI now possesses the full autonomy, legal mandate, and institutional authority to design, pilot, and anchor its own quality-assurance frameworks, thereby transforming Ujuzi Manyattani into a pillar of national development. This also means that Ujuzi Manyattani will no longer be confined to the conservancies; rather, the training will be taken to other parts of the country.

“Through this unique training model, we will continue offering our market-responsive, hands-on courses and explore technology-based training options to maintain our training strategy and meet the needs of Kenyan women and youth,” says Mr Ture Boru, MashinaniWORKS Chief Economic Programs Officer.

Our MashinaniWORKS Board Chairperson, Dr Kevit Desai, PhD, MBS, CBS, FIET, added, “UMTI’s accreditation marks a transformative milestone for vocational education and skills development in Kenya. It reflects a bold and innovative approach to empowering youth and women through accessible, market-responsive training. Having championed TVET transformation and competency-based education nationally, I strongly believe institutions such as Ujuzi Manyattani Training Institute are critical in shaping the future workforce and advancing inclusive economic growth.”

To date, Ujuzi Manyattani has skilled 1,713 alumni, who have injected over Ksh. 180 million annually into the local economy, an income that did not exist before the programme’s introduction. With this official stamp of approval, the future looks even brighter as we prepare to reach thousands more, scaling up sustainable livelihoods and economic transformation.

We owe this monumental leap to our incredible partners, most especially the Livelihood Impact Fund (LIF) for their generous support in funding the accreditation process, the partnering TVET institutions, and the resilient communities across Northern and Coastal Kenya who trusted our vision from the very start.

Ujuzi Manyattani will always strive to invest in innovative approaches to reach vulnerable and disadvantaged youth wherever they are.

The future is business and skills

Two Friends, One Workshop: The Partnership Powering Phone Repair in Saleti

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Ibrahim Adan (L) and Mohamud Mohammed (R) at their workshop in Saleti

If you’re scrolling through TikTok, you might stumble upon a video that feels different from the usual dance trends. It’s a close-up shot of two pairs of hands, steady as surgeons, working under a bright bulb or natural light. One hand holds a heat gun to the edge of a shattered smartphone, while the other carefully manoeuvres a thin prying tool.

This is the digital storefront of Moibra Phone Repair Services. It’s how Mohamud Mohammed and Ibrahim Adan, two friends from Saleti village, are telling the world that they’ve arrived.

To understand Moibra, you have to understand the bond between the two men behind the name. Mohamud and Ibrahim weren’t just classmates; they were friends who grew up in the same neighbourhood, navigating the same frustrations. After finishing Form Four, they found themselves in that hollow, quiet period that often follows secondary school in rural areas. For two years, they stayed at home, helping where they could, but feeling the weight of being “idle.” For Mohamud, the pressure was even more personal—he had started a family, who were counting on him, and he knew that just “getting by” wasn’t going to pay for the school fees his oldest child would soon need.

They didn’t want to just find any job; they wanted to solve a problem they saw every day in Saleti. The village was full of smartphones, but it was a “repair desert.” If your phone’s mouthpiece died or the speaker gave out, you were stuck. Seeing this, the two friends decided to enroll together in the three-month mobile repair course. While they were friends before the training, it was over those workbenches that they realised they functioned better as a team. By the time graduation came on February 13, 2024, they didn’t just have certificates; they had a business plan.

They knew that if they didn’t start immediately, the techniques they’d mastered would start to get “rusty.” Practice makes perfect, and they couldn’t afford to be anything less than perfect. They pooled KSh 10,000 each, a massive amount given they’d been out of work for two years, and rented a tiny room for KSh 1,000.

It was a tough, gritty start. The shop had no electricity. They had to rely on solar panels, which meant their workday was entirely at the mercy of the weather. On cloudy days, or once the sun began to dip toward the horizon at 4:00 PM, their tools went cold. They had the startup toolkits from the program—the fine-tipped screwdrivers, the multimeters, the soldering irons—but without consistent power, they were limited. Yet they stuck it out for six months in that dark shop, saving every coin and building a reputation as the only qualified technicians in the area.

By April 8, 2024, they officially launched the Moibra brand. They weren’t just “fixing phones”; they were running a professional service. To get the word out, they put up posters and took to TikTok, using social media to show off their repairs to a younger, tech-savvy audience. The strategy worked. Soon, customers weren’t just coming from Saleti, but travelling from Malkagalla and Merti because they finally had qualified technicians close to home. By October, the savings from their first shop allowed them to do something bold. They moved into their own new establishment that finally had electricity connectivity after the village got connected to the power grid.

It was an investment of over KSh 25,000 into their future. With constant power, they could finally handle the high-stakes jobs, like screen replacements that cost between KSh 2,800 and KSh 3,000. They also made a smart choice by adding a barber shop section. They realised that in Saleti, people travel a long way to get their phones fixed. By offering a haircut for KSh 700 or 800 while the client waited for a new phone speaker or mouthpiece, they ensured the shop was always buzzing, and income was always steady.

Thanks to the entrepreneurship and financial literacy lessons they received from Biashara Mashinani, the partners maintain strict records. They track their monthly profits and share them fairly, and they’ve learned the hard way to avoid unnecessary credit extensions that could drain their cash flow.

For Mohamud, the shop is a lifeline. It means his children have a father who can provide for them, and his oldest can stay in school without the fear of being sent home for fees. For the village, the two men have earned a new kind of respect. They aren’t just “the boys from the neighbourhood” anymore; they are the experts who brought the digital world back to life in Saleti.

Their plan for the next few years is to take Moibra even further, opening branches in other towns and eventually helping other young people get off the streets. They might eventually open their own separate shops one day, but for now, they are proving that a friendship forged in the village and tempered over a soldering iron is the strongest foundation a business can have.

Water for the People, Work for Paul

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Before the sound of running water ever meant income, Paul Kiperus was known around Kiwanja as the guy you’d find at the riverbeds, loading sand onto lorries. Today, he’s the one people call when their tanks are leaking or when they finally decide to install indoor plumbing.

He was in Form 1 when everything changed. An elephant attacked his father while he was running errands. The injuries were serious, such that both legs were broken, and just like that, Paul had to stop school. The money that would have been allocated for his school fees was redirected to cover hospital bills and other medical expenses. As the eldest child, he stepped up, and school had to wait as he stayed back to take care of his siblings.

To make ends meet, Paul worked at sand harvesting sites. He’d get Ksh. 300 for every lorry he helped load. Most of the time, he was forced to work in the dead of night; it was cold, tiring, and risky. The riverbeds could flood without warning, and on more than one occasion, he feared for his life. But he kept going because staying idle was not an option.

While working as a sand harvester, Paul still found time to help around his community. He had volunteered for two years to monitor water pipes in a nearby Community Land Management Committee (CLMC) project, even though he didn’t know how to fix them. Whenever there was a leak, someone else had to be called in. The board saw his dedication, and when Ujuzi Manyattani came, they suggested he take it a step further by enrolling in a plumbing course under the vocational training program. It was something he had quietly been working toward all along.

At first, upon joining, he was nervous. He had never been to a classroom since dropping out of school. Some of the skills he was taught included pipe fitting, water supply, drainage systems, and plumbing fixtures, among others. They even had practical sessions in nearby schools.

After completing training, Paul didn’t sit still. He took on small jobs, such as fixing tanks, repairing leaks, and connecting homes to the water supply. His phone started ringing more often. For the first time in years, he had regular work and income he could count on. “I’d leave the house in the morning and come back in the evening with something for the family,” he says.

With his nationally recognized certificate in hand, Paul applied for a job under the Makurian Osirua Water Project with Laikipia County. He was accepted as a casual and has now been on the payroll for nine months, earning around Ksh. 9,000 monthly. For bigger jobs, he links his classmates from the program.

He’s also been involved by the Mayianat Conservancy management in repairing pipelines that elephants have destroyed.

Their area had always struggled with access to water. When a storage tank was finally built to help the community, many families wanted water piped directly to their homes. Paul took it upon himself to lend a hand. The demand grew so rapidly that he decided to open a small plumbing workshop, stocking fittings and connectors that people used to travel as far as Nanyuki to buy.

With support from Rangelands SACCO through FFI-Darwin, he got a Ksh. 50,000 loan to expand.  Paul dreams of further growing his shop, adding things beyond plumbing and other hardware materials.

A 19-Year-Old Turning Her Passion Into a Paycheck

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Born and raised in Kiwanja, within the Maiyanat Conservancy in Laikipia County, Jackline Wamoke was practically raised on the scent of hair oils, the rhythmic tug of braids being parted and plaited, and the lively chatter that fills a salon.

Her mother, a long-practicing hairdresser, passed down more than a profession; she nurtured a sense of possibility. Jackline’s older sister followed that same path, and together, they formed a kind of informal apprenticeship that shaped Jackline from an early age.

During school holidays, she would spend hours in the salon, slowly learning the techniques through observation and practice, the rhythm of customer care, and the business instinct required. These small acts of care and craft shaped Jackline’s childhood and, over time, revealed that she could one day take on the family trade.

After completing Form Four in 2023, she enrolled in Ujuzi Manyattani in March 2024, a program designed to empower young people in marginalized areas by offering hands-on vocational skills locally relevant to their communities’ needs, which can translate into immediate income. The training went far beyond what she had learned in her mother’s salon. Ujuzi Manyattani introduced her to contemporary trends in beauty and personal care, expanding her expertise to include beauty therapy, such as makeup, manicures, and pedicures. Jackline quickly distinguished herself among the top performers in her cohort, propelled by a desire to elevate her craft to a professional level.

Upon graduating, Jackline wasn’t looking for a job; she was returning to one. Her sister, who had been managing the family salon, passed the baton to Jackline and was ready for its next phase. She made immediate upgrades to the salon, starting with the tools she received through the Ujuzi Manyattani program to redefine the customer experience. She replaced the small wall-mounted mirror with a full-sized one, added a blow dryer and a sink for improved hair treatment services, and hair clippers to begin offering barbering, an in-demand service in the area.

These changes might seem small, but they made a world of difference in both the quality of service she could provide and how customers viewed her business. She didn’t need to win the community’s trust from scratch. They already knew her first as the young girl helping around the salon, later as a trained stylist with new skills to offer. In Kiwanja, where only two other salons operate, competition is limited, and Jackline’s reputation gives her a natural edge. She’s precise, whether it’s lines for schoolgirls, plaits for weekend weddings, or a fresh shave for the boys, she does it all with passion, making sitting on her salon chair something to look forward to.

On a regular day, she sees four to five customers, though that number often rises during peak periods, such as school openings and community events. Her mother, still very much part of this evolving journey, often steps in to help during these high-traffic days. On a good day, Jackline can make anywhere from Ksh. 800 to Ksh. 3,000, depending on the number of customers she serves.

Now, her income is directed to savings, but she still manages to set something aside for her younger siblings’ pocket money and help out with the little things that add up in a household, such as restocking sugar when it runs out or picking up flour on her way home. Her entrepreneurial spirit also pushed her to start selling shoes, clothes, and beads from her salon, which is another way to earn extra money.

Jackline dreams of expanding her salon into a larger space to accommodate more customers and offer additional services.

Thanks to the funding support from Fauna and Flora, under the Darwin Initiative through the Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT).

Defying Gravity: How Ujuzi Manyattani Transformed a Young Man’s Life

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Born into a Turkana family in a remote village in northern Kenya’s Isiolo County, Jonathan Nawapa’s early life was shaped by financial crisis.

In a desperate attempt to improve their circumstances, Jonathan’s family relocated to the outskirts of Isiolo Town. However, escalating living costs and the difficulties of adjusting to a new environment compelled Jonathan’s parents to make tough decisions, including discontinuing Jonathan’s education.

Consequently, he withdrew from school after completing Grade 7. Ever since he was a little boy, Jonathan had been fascinated by the art of fixing things. Now that he had plenty of free time, he spent countless hours working beside his uncle, who often repaired household equipment such as radios, and learnt by observing each step.

As fate would have it, Jonathan’s uncle passed away, and he felt the loss deeply. Death had robbed him of a mentor. Despite his devastation, Jonathan followed in the footsteps of his uncle and began repairing small gadgets in the house, including watches and radios. Having no access to electricity, he adopted his uncle’s improvisational techniques. He would heat a five-cent coin on a charcoal stove, then use it as a makeshift soldering tool to connect wires. His ingenuity did not go unnoticed. Over time, the community began to turn to him for assistance fixing broken equipment.

Jonathan repairs a television at his workshop. ©MashinaniWORKS

After turning 20, Jonathan sought ways to learn the intricacies of equipment repair and lift his family out of poverty. In Isiolo Town, he met an experienced technician who took him under his wing as an apprentice for five years. During this period, he learnt to repair a variety of home appliances. His interest was piqued, and he dreamed of expanding his skill set to include mobile phone repair.

Jonathan’s big break came when a Leparua Community Conservancy board member noticed his dedication and informed him of the ICEP-funded Ujuzi Manyattani vocational training programme. Without hesitation, Jonathan enrolled in the mobile phone repair and maintenance course. The next three months were life-changing for him, as he learned essential repair techniques from a professional TVET trainer.

On February 13, 2024, 140 trainees graduated from Ujuzi Manyattani, and Jonathan was among them.
Like the other graduates, Jonathan was issued a certificate and a start-up toolkit, enabling him to establish a business right after graduation. Soon after, he joined a Village Savings and Loans Association and borrowed Ksh 30,000 (USD 232.55) to rent a small workshop and purchase additional tools.

Jonathan (far right) poses for a photo with his classmates as they proudly hold up their certificates during the Ujuzi Manyattani graduation ceremony on February 13th. ©MashinaniWORKS

Today, Jonathan’s shop is a bustling hub of electronic repairs, attracting nearby clients as well as those from neighboring Samburu and Marsabit Counties, who send in their devices via bus. He earns at least Ksh 3,000 daily (approximately USD 23.25) and up to Ksh 10,000 (approximately USD 77.51) for complex repairs, such as fixing television screens.

Jonathan shares his workshop with a business partner. Their combined expertise enables them to expand their service offering, which ranges from repairing phones, thermostats, coils, cables, and kettle fuses to fixing television backlights, motherboards, power supplies, and screens.

Jonathan envisions stocking the workshop with spare parts to reduce costs and training youth in his community. He aspires to create opportunities for others like him to learn profitable skills, so they too can improve their livelihoods, just as he has.