25,000 Youth Join Govt’s Climate Worx Program

Kenya’s fight against climate change gained a major boost on Friday as 25,000 young people were officially inducted into the Climate Worx Program, a flagship national green workforce initiative, during a high-profile event held at Uhuru Gardens in Nairobi.

The induction marks a bold step in the government’s effort to scale up its urban climate resilience strategy, with a focus on creating sustainable jobs, restoring degraded ecosystems, and transforming informal settlements into cleaner, safer, and more livable spaces.

A Vision for Green Jobs and Urban Renewal

The Climate Worx Program is spearheaded by the Ministry of Lands, Public Works, Housing and Urban Development, in partnership with county governments, the Nairobi Rivers Commission (NRC), the National Youth Service (NYS), and various civil society organisations. It is designed to tackle urban environmental degradation while offering meaningful employment and skills development opportunities to Kenyan youth.

Speaking during the ceremony, Rtd. Brigadier Joseph Muracia, CEO of the Nairobi Rivers Commission, emphasised the program’s long-term value:

“This isn’t just about cleaning up our environment; it’s about tackling the problem at the source. It’s about restoring dignity to informal workers, revitalizing neglected urban spaces, and building a greener, more inclusive future led by our youth.”

Targeting Informal Settlements

The new recruits will be deployed to high-density informal settlements, riparian zones, and flood-prone areas across urban Kenya. These teams — made up of youth, women, NYS graduates, and community-based groups — were selected through a structured recruitment process held over recent months.

The program has already made notable strides in transforming sites such as Kibra, Dandora, and Lucky Summer, through projects involving riverbank decontamination, sanitation upgrades, and drainage improvement. The next phase will include work along the 27-kilometre Nairobi River corridor, which is currently undergoing phased rehabilitation under a Special Planning Area (SPA) framework gazetted earlier this year in March 2025.

Impact

The Climate Worx initiative is unique in its multi-dimensional approach, delivering benefits on three fronts:

• Environmental: Cleaning water bodies, restoring riverbanks, and improving waste management.
• Economic: Creating paid jobs for underserved youth and offering training and enterprise development pathways.
• Social: Promoting inclusion, improving public health, and reclaiming urban spaces for community use and recreation.

With this latest induction, the program now enters a new chapter of expansion and visibility, with more sites expected to open in the coming weeks. Mobilization will continue through collaborations with housing teams, urban development units, and local community organizations.

A Model for Integrated Development

Dignitaries at the event underlined that Climate Worx is not a one-off intervention, but a long-term solution to urban challenges brought on by climate change and rapid population growth. Continued investments are being made in tools, training, infrastructure, and inter-agency coordination to ensure lasting impact.

The program is fast becoming a national model for integrated urban development, demonstrating how climate adaptation, youth empowerment, and economic inclusion can go hand-in-hand.

As the 25,000-strong green workforce steps into action, a new era of urban transformation begins — driven by the energy of Kenya’s youth and the urgency of environmental renewal.

Read: The Nairobi Rivers of Hope: How Climate Worx Has Restored Flow of Beauty

>>> How Climate Worx Will Create Jobs for Kenyan Youth