Salesians Empowering Youth from Disadvantaged Backgrounds in Kenya with Technical Skills

Nairobi, 04 November, 2021 / 2:19 AM

Members of the Religious Institute of the Salesians of Don Bosco (SDB) are empowering youth from disadvantaged backgrounds in Kenya with technical skills, officials of the Religious Order have reported.

In a Wednesday, November 3 report, officials of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of SDB say, “Don Bosco Boys Town, located in Nairobi, Kenya, teaches technical skills to youth from economically and socially disadvantaged backgrounds.”

“These youth, who live in slums and other informal settlements, have little chance for an education and advancement in life,” they further say in the report published by Mission Newswire, the official news service of Salesian Missions. 

They add in reference to the beneficiaries of the Nairobi facility, “Salesians are ensuring they are able to gain the skills for later employment.”

“Don Bosco Boys Town also provides education and technical skills training to former street children and offers a primary, secondary and technical school,” officials of Salesian Missions add in the November 3 report.

They note that the two-year technical training provides “youth with a wide variety of skills training programs to choose from, including tailoring, car engineering/mechanics, carpentry, electrical work and welding, as well as secretarial skills and a full spectrum of computer-related job skills.”

“After graduation, more than 80 percent of graduates are employed in their fields of study. Many students go on to attend university or establish their own businesses in Nairobi,” officials of the development arm of SDB further say. 

Since its launch in 1985, the report indicates, “Don Bosco Boys Town has provided education to more than 6,000 boys and girls.”

Recently, officials of the Salesian Missions say, “state-of-the-art machinery was purchased and installed for the computerized automatic wheel balancing section, along with a new lathe in the mechanical section and new generation sewing machines for the tailoring department.”

“Don Bosco Boys Town provides youth with a chance to gain an education and become self-sufficient later in life,” Fr. Gus Baek, has been quoted as saying in the November 3 report.

Fr. Baek adds, “Students who complete their primary education are then assisted with secondary education or are advised to choose technical training to learn marketable skills.”