Why 71% of Kenyan Youths Would Like to Leave the Country to Settle Abroad

Majority of Kenyan youths say, given a chance, they would leave the country immediately in search of greener pastures; a new study indicates.

Research findings published in the British Council’s Next Generation Kenya Report indicates that corruption, high cost of living, high unemployment rates, crime, violence and insecurity were the main reasons why majority of the young people would like to emigrate.

Nevertheless, the youth have a strong sense of pride in Kenya, with 91 percent of the respondents saying they love their country, and 86% stating that both heritage and identity are close to their hearts.

In the study which explores the hopes and aspirations of young generation in Kenya, a majority of them felt that the country has made progress in recent years, 62% of the respondents saying they believe their lives are better than those of their parents’ lived. The research also established that nationality was youth's strongest source of identity, ahead of family, religion and ethnicity.

71 percent of the respondents said they are willing to emigrate to other parts of the world in search of better opportunities.

“There is no safety. Because our leaders are corrupt, the whole system is corrupt, meaning that even those people who are supposed to be protecting us like the cops are also corrupt. In institutions like the police, money becomes power,”  a female girl in Nairobi, aged 16, said.

“If you want to be successful in Kenya, you have to give up some morals,” said a male youth in Turkana.

“Getting people to employ us – it’s like a dream that you will probably die without achieving. Our youths have so much talent- youth need to be given access to employment,” a male youth in Mombasa said.

Speaking during the launch of the report, the British Council Country Director in Kenya,Tony Reilly said: “Like young people around the world, they hold strong views and are keen for their opinions to be heard, heeded and acted  upon. And yet there are grave concerns that the education young people are accessing, in increasingly large numbers, may fall short in equipping the next generation with the skills, knowledge and behaviours needed to thrive in the 21st century."