The small Technology, Art and Heritage centre rests in the outskirts of the Indian Ocean, isolated from the Mombasa Central Business District (CBC) perhaps to provide conducive environment that will enable the youthful generation have a calm, peaceful environment where they can meditate, innovate, discover, practice and perfect their technological and artistic talents.
Some have been working out on their God-given talents to an extent of perfecting them and developing their business initiatives, successfully absorbing their colleagues thus becoming self-reliance and employing their peers too.
Inaugurated in 2016, Swahilipot Hub was a glowing baby brought to the world by renowned youth mentor Mahmoud Noor, and now when the bold-hearted selfless icon sits back and watch the centre managed by the youth themselves it soothes his heart and soul, however, he says despite the registered milestone, he is not done yet.
When Jambo team visited the Technology, Arts and Heritage centre located near Mombasa governor’s office we met a team of young innovators, techies and visionary young leaders who have taken charge to see the international hub remain at the nerve centre of the coastal youth.
“We started as a technology hub with a battery of techies who camped to plan, design, develop, analyse and come up with technology related initiatives including developing various Apps and Websites that aimed at solving various business related challenges and social problems,” noted Issah Ziri, the centre’s IT Manager.
However, after a survey, the team realised that many Mombasa youth were more on arts and wanted to develop their talents, a situation that impelled Swahilipot Hub pioneers to choreograph art related programs where they nurtured the young talented youth who had the zeal of improving their musical, acting and many other creative arts.
“In just six months we registered huge numbers from 300 members to over 2000 members in the hub, with this new revelations, we knew what the youth wanted and we immediately ventured into more programs that would not only suit the youth career growth but also enable them get mini contracts and eke out a living,” revealed a composed Ziri.
With almost a decade since its launch, Swahilipot Hub has been focusing more on nurturing youth talents, ensure revenues flows to the youth programs and individual income generating initiatives, the use of social media in enabling youth grab any opportunity that comes forth, technology products development among them creating websites for clients and the coding program as well.
Strong network
The centre that has attracted international icons in the recent past among them French ambassador H.E Arnaud Suquet, other dignitaries and national government officials, boasts of strong network and partnership that has made it extend its wings in reaching many coastal youth who are now managing their own initiatives in both the artistic and technology sectors.
“With such strong partnership, we have secured jobs for our youth in the hospitality, health and entrepreneurship sectors where together with other working partners among them Cisco Academy we have trained the youth to fit the demands of the employer, we don’t just train and leave these young people stranded,” noted the Partnership Director, Rukiya Janwallah.
She said working with the government, learning institutions, and creating partnerships has yielded fruits, a thing that has seen many youth through their zeal and efforts transform their once ‘dull’ lives to a very vibrant, progressive, career and personal growth levels enabling them make ends meet.
“With all these efforts, the main objective is making our youth economically stable whether they acquired basic education, higher or technical education or otherwise for some reasons without any form of basic education, we train them, source for linkages among our networks and partnership and to date, the success is tremendous,” she noted.
“Under the hospitality sector we worked with Boma International College of Hospitality where our first cohort of 30 youth were trained and then linked to the hospitality industry where we have opportunities like animation and other forms of employment. With such network, we have instilled hope to our once hopeless youth,” said Miss Janwallah.
She further disclosed that the Hub is focusing more on the opportunities available in the hospitality, health entrepreneurship. In health sector youth are trained to provide home based care for the sick and other duties performed together with professional qualified registered nurses.
The safe haven for the youth in Mombasa is focusing on reaching 20,000 youth with mentorship programs in the next three years. These determinations will traverse all the six coastal counties of Lamu, Tana River, Kilifi, Kwale, Taita Taveta and Mombasa. With other working partners, the Centre will create hubs in those counties to enable youth benefit from the extensions without necessarily have to travel to the main Swahilipot Hub in Mombasa.
[Children developping their technology skills at the Swahilipot Hub Centre in Mombasa. The program was being conducted under the Tech Kids initiative led by Paul Akwabi. Photo/courtesy/January, 30, 24].
“Our mentorship program has taken a notch higher. We are focusing on Demand- driven opportunities, we conducted a survey and realised that our efforts have transformed the youth mindset, they now need more mentorship guidance and their ideas developed into income generating projects, which is the main objective of this initiative,” charged the Executive Associate in the mentorship program Jacqueline Chepkoech Kiplagat.
Miss Kiplagat noted that the Global Opportunity Youth Network (GOYN) program acted as a makeover for youth in Mombasa and other areas within the Coast region.
The mentorship programs, skills development, talent nurturing and employment linkages have payed vital role, positively impacting youth lives.
The Technology, Art and Heritage Centre is also the incubator of Tech Kids Africa under the stewardship of Mr Paul Akwabi.
Numbers
According to Kiplagat, they have reached over 90 000 youth with the mentorship gospel, in the process, over 5000 Mombasa youth who were once living in desperation have improved and are now working towards face-lifting their lives. Over 2,000 youth completely transformed their lives and are now working on their income development creativities in various areas within the coastal counties, mostly in Mombasa.
[Swahilipot Hub Founder and renowned youth Mentor Mahmoud Noor. Photo/courtesy/January, 30, 24].
“These efforts have dissuaded many youth from social vices, we have enabled youth to indulge in community development and self-reliance programs completely deterring them from criminal activities and abusing drugs. In a group of youth living in despair when you help out one that’s a milestone since the successfully transformed individual will impart the same zeal to the other and before you know it the whole group will be extremely productive in their own society,” she reiterated.
On her part, Nancy Moraa, a primary stakeholder who directly benefited from Swahilipot Hub mentorship programs and who works in the communication and corporate department of the Swahilipot Hub Foundation notes “As youth when you are given the opportunity to nurture your talent and grow yourself, please do not relent or play with such noble opportunity, emphasize on creating a strong base of your future. Continuous nurturing and mentorship will be impact less if your will not take the mantle of your life,” she said.
