Part 3: How County Governments in Kenya can create Jobs

 

Part 3. How County governments can create jobs

 

County governments are in a good position to create jobs because they have to deal with fewer issues than the national governments. They also have the advantage of dealing with smaller more homogenous people since most counties have a population of people with the same needs, skills and interests. So, how can they create jobs?

Step one: Create a Stock Exchange(To raise capital)

The format can be similar to the Nairobi Securities Exchange whereby Existing companies in the respective counties can raise capital to expand their businesses or brand new companies can use the stock exchange to raise capital to start their business. Since agriculture is one of the country's biggest employers, emphasis can be put on agricultural projects. Many young people have the energy to engage in the agribusiness sector, but they don’t have the capital to start. This stock exchange created in the respective counties can be a great way to kick start their projects. In industrialized counties like Nairobi, many young people may want to focus more on tech startups. So different counties may have different priorities. 

Example 1: Imagine a group of young people who want to start a farming business and they need 1 million shillings to buy equipment, pay for labour and all the other farming needs. They just approach their county stock exchange and they sell shares at 10ksh each. if there are 100,000 investors in the county, they can raise that money quickly and start working on their project. 

Example 2: Imagine a group of young and older people who have engineering degrees and have worked in different capacities in construction and other things that engineers do. They approach the county stock exchange and they sell shares at 100ksh each. If they get 1 million investors, they will be able to raise 100 million and they will be able to lease all the equipment they need to bid for big construction projects within and outside the county.

 

Step two: Educating the masses

The majority of the people may need convincing in why they may invest in such a plan. Many people are used to working alone or with family members. The idea of them giving their money to somebody else to do business may be challenging for them. However, if they see that they can make money with little effort, they may see the benefit of investing in other companies.

Question: Can someone in the private sector just start his own stock exchange?

Yes, they can. I’ve only suggested that county governments do it because it is easier for politicians to rally the masses to act or refrain from acting in a certain way. For example, when people in a certain locality hear that their MP will be in a certain venue, they quickly rush there because they know something important will be said. So it will be easier for them to implement the idea. Also, it is easier for an arm of government to verify the credentials of an investor.

Benefits

1. Jobs will be created. And this will benefit the entire county since those who will get the jobs will increase their spending habits. This will, in turn, benefit the entire population of the county, whether or not they invested in the stock exchange

2. Purchasing products locally will be more enjoyable. Imagine you have invested in a company and it opens a supermarket. You will happily shop there because you know every time the company makes a profit, their value goes up, and your investment increases in value.

3. Those who have invested in the companies will make a dividend at the end of the year thus increasing their income without increasing the number of hours working

 

Conclusion

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