{"id":30667,"date":"2026-06-30T15:14:27","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T12:14:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/?p=30667"},"modified":"2026-06-30T16:49:30","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T13:49:30","slug":"from-skills-to-impact-siaya-youth-reap-the-benefits-of-acwict-digital-skills-training","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/from-skills-to-impact-siaya-youth-reap-the-benefits-of-acwict-digital-skills-training\/","title":{"rendered":"From Skills to Impact: Siaya Youth Reap the Benefits of ACWICT Digital Skills Training"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Grace Adhiambo<\/strong><\/p>\n

Nearly three months after graduating from the UK Government Digital Access Programme (UKDAP), the impact of the digital skills training is already transforming lives across Siaya County.
\n\"\"On 16 April 2026, 494 youths successfully completed the Inclusive Digital Futures programme, implemented by the African Centre for Women in ICT (ACWICT) and sponsored by the British High Commission. The initiative equipped women, youth, and persons with disabilities with practical skills in IT and device repair, online gig work, digital agriculture, and the creative economy, opening doors to new economic opportunities.
\nDuring the Project Dissemination and Sustainability Workshop held at Sirikwa Hotel, beneficiaries shared inspiring testimonies of how the training has changed their lives.
\nCollins Otieno, who trained in IT and device repair, has established a phone repair business that now earns him an average of KSh 15,000 per month. He specialises in screen, motherboard, and charging system repairs.
\nHellen Atieno, an agribusiness graduate, transformed her two-hectare maize farm from making losses to generating multiple income streams through AI-powered marketing and farmer mentorship. In her words, \u201cACWICT didn\u2019t just teach me to farm; it taught me to think like an entrepreneur.\u201d
\nWilfred, a student, has grown his TikTok following to over 10,000 followers and now serves as an Infinix brand ambassador, earning KSh 500 daily through content creation\"\".
\nPresiding over the graduation ceremony, Governor James Orengo reaffirmed the importance of science, technology, and artificial intelligence in driving economic transformation. He thanked the British High Commission for investing in Siaya\u2019s youth and creating opportunities for growth in the digital economy.
\nSpeaking during the workshop, Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Wisley Rotich, who is also the Chairperson of the ICT Committee at the Council of Governors, urged young people to embrace AI literacy, digital marketing, content creation, the gig economy, and digital agriculture as pathways to meaningful employment.
\nRepresenting the British High Commission, John Manyolo described the programme as a journey of partnership, learning, resilience, and ambition. He emphasized that digital skills are tools for income generation, enterprise, dignity, and resilience.
\nChair of the Siaya Technical Committee, Ms Zilpah Menya, commended Siaya\u2019s outstanding participation and called for the institutionalization of digital skills programmes. She encouraged beneficiaries to use their knowledge to compete and thrive in the global digital economy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Grace Adhiambo Nearly three months after graduating from the UK Government Digital Access Programme (UKDAP), the impact of the digital skills training is already transforming lives across Siaya County. On 16 April 2026, 494 youths successfully completed the Inclusive Digital Futures programme, implemented by the African Centre for Women in ICT (ACWICT) and sponsored […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":30668,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[134],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-30667","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-release"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30667","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30667"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30667\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30668"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30667"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30667"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/siaya.go.ke\/siaya\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30667"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}