NCPD Calls for Greater Investment in Youth as Kenya Marks World Population Day

By Our Reporter Maurice Momanyi

The National Council for Population and Development (NCPD) has urged the government, development partners and the private sector to increase investments in young people, describing Kenya’s youthful population as the country’s greatest asset rather than a burden.
Speaking during the 2026 World Population Day celebrations held at the Sarova Stanley Hotel in Nairobi on Friday, NCPD Board Chairman Hon. Ali Wario said Kenya should stop referring to its growing youth population as a “youth bulge” and instead recognize it as a “powerhouse of potential.”
Wario noted that more than 75 per cent of Kenya’s population is below the age of 35, presenting a unique opportunity to accelerate economic growth if the country invests in education, skills development and employment opportunities.
“Our young people are not a statistical problem to be managed. They are the drivers of our economic growth,” he said, adding that the Council’s mandate is to ensure population growth aligns with the country’s economic resources to improve the quality of life for all Kenyans.
The chairman also highlighted the proposed NCPD Bill, describing it as a transformative legal framework that would strengthen the Council’s capacity to manage population issues, improve data collection and place population planning at the centre of national development. He reaffirmed the Board’s commitment to supporting the institution’s management and staff while thanking development partners, particularly the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), for supporting initiatives such as the Population Situation Analysis report that informs evidence-based planning.
Wario said young people were not seeking handouts but opportunities, calling for reforms in education, expansion of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), digital employment opportunities and stronger investment in human capital to help them realize their aspirations.
Principal Secretary for the State Department for Economic Planning Dr. Boniface Makokha said this year’s World Population Day theme, “Realizing the Hopes and Aspirations of Young People Today and for the Future,” aligns closely with Kenya’s development agenda.
He observed that while many developed countries are grappling with ageing populations and declining fertility rates, Kenya’s youthful population presents enormous opportunities if properly harnessed.

According to the PS, about 63 per cent of Kenyans are below the age of 25, creating a large potential workforce and consumer market. However, he said this also demands sustained investment in education, healthcare and job creation.
Makokha cited findings from the Demographic Futures Survey and the Kenya Population Situation Analysis Report, which show that nearly half of young people in East and Southern Africa remain optimistic about their future despite economic challenges.
He, however, warned that the gap between young people’s aspirations and economic realities must be addressed through stable employment, affordable housing and accessible reproductive healthcare.
“The demographic dividend is not automatic. It requires deliberate, rights-based and forward-looking interventions,” he said.
The PS outlined several government initiatives aimed at empowering young people, including expanded access to quality education, universal healthcare, adolescent-friendly reproductive health services and programmes promoting women’s economic empowerment such as the Hustler Fund, Youth Enterprise Fund, Uwezo Fund, NYOTA Fund, MSME Fund and the National Government Affirmative Action Fund.
He further noted that Kenya has made significant progress in promoting gender equality through constitutional and legal reforms, while urging county governments, civil society, development partners and the private sector to use population data to guide planning and budgeting.
Representing UNFPA, Acting Representative Innocent Modisaotsile echoed the call for greater investment in young people, saying Kenya’s youthful population represents a demographic dividend that must be deliberately earned through strategic policy choices.
He said young Kenyans remain optimistic about marriage and family life despite economic hardships, but many are delaying these aspirations because of unemployment, housing challenges and financial insecurity.
“What is holding them back is not a lack of desire, but a lack of certainty,” he said.
Modisaotsile stressed that effective population policy should go beyond population numbers and instead focus on expanding opportunities, protecting rights and enabling young people to make informed life choices.
He called for increased investments in comprehensive sexual and reproductive health services, protection of girls from child marriage, female genital mutilation and gender-based violence, future-ready education, affordable housing and stronger youth participation in national and county planning.
He reaffirmed UNFPA’s commitment to working with the Government of Kenya, county governments, civil society and the private sector to advance Kenya’s Vision 2030, the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals.
This year’s World Population Day was commemorated under the global theme, “Realizing the Hopes and Aspirations of Young People Today and for the Future,” with speakers calling for coordinated action to ensure Kenya’s growing youth population becomes a catalyst for inclusive and sustainable development.