Alongside the Clinton Global Initiative, Light Up Hope launches “Pathways to Employment in Kenya” to equip 5,000 young women for jobs and entrepreneurship by 2030. University partnerships, mentorship, paid apprenticeships, and small-business support will accelerate income and opportunity
“Too many talented young women graduate without a clear path to a good job, Pathways to Employment closes that last-mile gap—connecting classroom learning to real employers, real mentors, and real income” Kelly Shaughnessy, President of Light Up Hope
Light Up Hope, has a proven track record of helping young women bridge the gap from education to income with 89% of their students generating income through entrepreneurship even before graduation. Light Up Hope announces today a new initiative, Pathways to Employment in Kenya, a five-year plan to prepare 5,000 Kenyan young women for in-demand jobs and entrepreneurship by 2030. The program links university coursework with market-aligned skills training, internships mentorship and psychosocial support, and small-business coaching delivered in partnership with Kenyan universities and employers.
THIS PROGRAM PROVIDES:
Working alongside leading Kenyan universities (including the University of Eldoret, University of Nairobi, and Kenyatta University) and a growing network of employers, the initiative will:
Provide job skills & career-readiness training with job-matching services
Offer mentorship & psychosocial support to ensure resilience and confidence
Create 500 internship opportunities
Support 250 early-stage entrepreneurs with capital, coaching and market guidance for small business startups.
Light Up Hope welcomes collaboration with Colorado employers, universities, Rotaries, and philanthropies and individuals to expand placement sites, mentorship, and scholarship support.
67%
67% of Kenyan youths are unemployed
100%
100% of our students who completed our university mentorship program are currently employed
Imagine a crossroad with two paths. One leads to the life you’ve always known and the other leads to the life you’ve always wanted, a life where you can achieve your dreams and lift your family out of poverty. The first path is familiar but disheartening, a life of struggling to fetch water, working long hard days for low pay and not knowing how you will feed your children.. The second path is blocked by the unknown, carrying with it a promise of a different life but through a land you are unable to navigate.
For the average young woman in Kenya preparing for graduation from university, despite four years of hard work and knowledge, the majority must take the familiar path back to the life they were born into. With an up to 67% unemployment rate for youths, the likely outcome post-graduation is they will be forced to turn to casual labor, unemployed motherhood, caretaking roles, or worse.
Female university graduates in Kenya are resilient, intelligent, and hardworking. Those who have family connections to employment are able to walk the path to success. But for those who are forging a new path—those who are the first in their family to earn a university degree—they’re stepping into the job market without a map or a network. In Kenya, this limbo even has a name: “tarmacking”—pounding the tarmac, going door to door, searching for a first opportunity. They don’t lack talent. They lack a path.
Light Up Hope’s Commitment to Action clears the way from classroom to income.
What does this path look like on the ground? It starts on campus with practical workshops and virtual sessions led by industry mentors. It continues at partner companies where students contribute to real projects and build real references. And for entrepreneurs, it includes financial literacy, go-to-market basics, and connections to buyers—so the first invoice isn’t a miracle; it’s a milestone.
By 2030, we commit to prepare 5,000 Kenyan young women to walk this path and we will measure success by paychecks and enterprise revenue, not just workshop attendance.
A new path is clearest when you have guides showing the way.
Let’s replace the season of tarmacking with a pathway that’s clear, supported, and traveled by thousands. We invite all our supporters to join us on this Clinton Global Initiative Commitment to Action in clearing the way—and walk alongside these graduates as they step into first jobs, first invoices, and first incomes to light a path out of poverty.
Joyce, a program beneficiary stands in front of the small business she started while pursuing her university degree
Real Life Impact
Joyce - Fashion with a Purpose
Kirinyaga University, Bachelor of Science in Medical Statistics and Epidemiology
Joyce Muinde is a university student and a rising entrepreneur with a deep passion for fashion. Through micro-enterprise training and mentorship sessions, Joyce learned how to turn her interest into a sustainable business. She started small; selling trendy outfits to her fellow students; but with determination, her business began to grow.
Thanks to her hard work and vision, Joyce is now among the few selected students in the final stages of receiving a business grant from Light Up Hope. This grant will help her expand her shop, restock inventory, improve her store setup, and cover rent for a few months. But beyond business growth, Joyce has a bigger mission: to uplift others.
Her dream is to create job opportunities and support students who face the same financial struggles she once did. Joyce’s journey shows how the right support at the right time can transform a passion into purpose.
Make a Difference