By Betty Luke
Sixty (60) young people in Isiolo are set to acquire skills to enable them manufacture disinfectants and antiseptics in a bid to keep them engaged and help them earn some income so that they do not indulge in drug and substance abuse.
The Programme by People Like Us Community Based Organisation, a widows-led group, seeks to address drug and substance abuse menace that has ruined the lives of hundreds of youths in the region.
High rate of unemployment and economic shocks occasioned by climate change and other pandemics have been blamed for the drug indulgence among the youth even as some claim they were using drugs so that they would forget the challenges they were facing.
Past research by the National Authority for the Campaign against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) listed Isiolo among the counties with a growing market for heroin and other drugs.
The popular and commonly abused drugs in Isiolo are tobacco and kete, a cheaper version of heroin that is less refined but has adverse effects on the user.
“We realized our children were headed in the wrong direction and thought of how we could assist them avoid the drugs. We decided to transfer skills that we have learned to them,” People Like Us official Ms Halima Osman said.
The group acquired the skills while seeking alternative ways to earn a living after losing a huge piece of land where they used to practice farming to land grabbers.
In collaboration with the World Food Program (WFP), the group is currently undertaking the training scheduled to last for three weeks.
Beneficiaries are being taught how to make liquid soap, hand wash, toilet cleaners, bleaching agents, and sanitizers among other products that they will sell locally.
One of them Abdia Adan hailed the intervention saying it would not only keep them engaged but also act as a source of income and enable them to take care of the families.
“Majority of us have been idle and forced to depend on our parents for a livelihood. The parents we depend on are also struggling with limited sources of income,” she said, adding that she was looking forward to also learning how to market her products.
Another beneficiary Hassan Ibrahim said the training was timely and would greatly impact the target groups.
“The majority of us contemplate indulging in drug abuse as a short-term solution to the issues we are facing. Finding something that eventually gives you an income is a huge relief,” he told The Press Point.
The beneficiaries were also encouraged to organize and register themselves in groups to benefit from government initiatives.
“We want to ensure youths who are not into drug abuse do not indulge themselves in the same. We will follow up and ensure they put the skills into proper use and for their own benefit,” CBO Chairperson Hussein Mohammed said.
