Concern over credibility of NITA courses

Nairobi, Wednesday, June 28 2023

KNA by Emma Jolly/Lucy Gitei

Members of the Senate Education Committee met on Tuesday with the Director General of the National Industrial Training Authority (NITA) Mr. Stephen Ogenga regarding the credibility of a course offered to Kenyan domestic workers by the Authority.

Kenya has a bilateral agreement with the Kingdom of South Arabia through NITA for training domestic workers on life skills, pre-departure orientation, home care, and child care.

Mr.Ogenga stated that they have 124 accredited institutions where domestic workers are trained for a period of 21 days and the minimum entry of the workers is the Kenya Certificate of Primary Education.

“The 21 days was a benchmark for an agreement that satisfied both the trainee and the industry”, clarified Ogenga.

He added that the fee charged by the institutions is Sh10,000 and is controlled by the private recruitment agencies who are the face of the supply chain.

Addressing the committee Mr. Ogenga stated that NITA trains the workers on what is demanded by the industry. The Authority sets, assesses, and moderates the beneficiaries within a good facility and also, they offer certification at a fee of Sh3,000 per sitting.

The Director General added that NITA works closely with the Employment Authority (NEA) that regulates the recruitment of domestic workers.

“The database information of the beneficiaries to the designated market is held by NEA then shared to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs” emphasized Ogenga.

Mr.Ogenga also explained that they carry out re-accreditation for the institutions to renew their licenses each financial year in March at Sh10,000.

He revealed that NITA is on the verge of incorporating the Ministry of Education through government institutions and TVET to carry out the piloting of their curriculum.

Courtesy ; K. N. A