Making rounds on social media platforms, the meagre pay youths who enlisted for the Kazi Mtaani initiatives has attracted public scrutiny.
A report by Citizen had earlier put the daily wages at a pathetic Sh90, other sources claim the youth are receiving Sh200 a day, if these rumours are true, Kazi Mtaani is an insult to the youth, there is no decency in the tasks undertaken and a good wage would be at least extended.
Replying to Citizens claims, Principal Secretary, State Dept for Housing and Urban Development Charles Hinga Mwaura has clarified the amount of money the youth are receiving per day.
“The State Department for Housing and Urban Development with partnering Government agencies has been running the National Hygiene Program Kazi Mtaani across 47 counties with over I,000 settlements. The program launched activities for Phase II in the week Of 13th July 2020 using a daily work for wages approach. In this approach, a total of 283,210 recruited workers were divided into two cohorts working a shift Of 11 days each within one month. In the program, workers are paid only for the days that they report to work at a rate of Sh455 per day for the workers and Sh505 per day for the supervisors.” He wrote
He further denied claims in the media that claimed the Youth in Uasin Gishu received less pay than was expected. “We want to confirm that in the last days, the program has been making payments to Cohort I workers for the first week of work covered between 13th and 17th July 2020. In Uasin Gishu where activities began on the 15th of July 2020. payments were processed for the three days of work between I Sth and 17th July 2020. we want to confirm that Kazi Mtaani youths who worked for three days should have received a total of Sh1,365, while those who worked for two days were paid a total of Sh910.” the statement read.
Machakos Governor Alfred Mutua has criticized the initiative lamenting that the youth hired in the program were only given rudimentary tasks such as with slashing bushes and clearing drainage.
These jobs, he stated, were not impactful as weeks down the line, bushes would grow back. Instead, he advised the state to spend the money on development projects like the construction of roads and toilets.
“Kazi Mtaani should be put for development. Let our youth build something. Let them come and build toilets and roads. Let them build the things that they can walk by a month later and can see it.” he explained.
The objective of the Kazi Mtaani program is to provide a form of social protection for workers whose prospects for daily or casual work has been disrupted by the containment policies put in place to limit the spread of COVID-19.
