The factors influencing accessibility of youth enterprise development fund in Mirangine sub county Nyandarua county, Kenya.

Abstract

The Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) was established in Kenya in 2006 with the aim of assisting the youth enterprises access capital to start up their own businesses or support existing ones. The purpose of this study was to establish the factors that influence accessibility of the Youth Enterprise Development Fund in Mirangine Sub County, Nyandarua County in Kenya. The objectives of the study were to determine the influence of youth training in financial management, youth attitude towards entrepreneurship, group dynamics and funds disbursement procedures on the accessibility of YEDF. The descriptive survey research design was employed in this study. The target population of the study was the youth in Mirangine Sub County and who belong to youth groups, those that have benefitted from the fund and those that have not. There were a total of ten registered youth groups with a total youth membership of 90. The study sought the participation of all the members of the registered youth groups and therefore 90 respondents were issued with questionnaires, which was the tool used to collect data in this study. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the data and presented using frequency tables and percentages. The results of the study showed that the factors that influence accessibility of YEDF were training in financial management, youth attitude towards entrepreneurship, group dynamics and the disbursement procedures.The study recommends that the youth need to be trained in financial management before and after receiving the funds. The application procedures also need to be made more friendly in order to encourage the youth to apply for the funds and to receive them in good time. A lot more sensitization needs to be done in order to bring more women into the groups in order for them also to enjoy the benefits of the youth fund.