Youth groups and individual youth have received Sh166,302,333 from the government through the Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) in a bid to boost them economically.

Speaking during the Vihiga County Service Delivery meeting held in the DIDC hall, Vihiga County YEDF officer Cleophas Odhiambo said the money has been disbursed to 43,577 youth entrepreneurs in the county.

Odhiambo said Sh102,394,573 had been disbursed directly to 41,980 youth entrepreneurs, while Sh63,907,760 was disbursed through financial intermediaries benefitting 1,597 youth in order to uplift them economically, as of August 30, 2026.

He added that Vihiga Sub County received Sh25,069,000, benefitting 10,837 youth, with their repayment rate standing at 80 per cent, while 9,461 youth from Sabatia Sub County have received Sh20,500,000 with a repayment of 82 percent.

He further said that 4,647 youth from Hamisi Sub County have received Sh15,533,000 and their repayment rate is at 84 percent, while 8,995 youth from Luanda Sub County have received Sh21,902,455, with a repayment of 79 percent.

The YEDF officer said 8,040 youth from Emuhaya sub-county have received Sh19,490,118 with a repayment rate of 80 percent, adding that the county’s overall repayment rate is at 81 percent.

He said that there are pending applications being processed at their head office with a credit worth of Sh6.825 million to 525 beneficiaries spread across the county.

He encouraged youths to apply for agribusiness and Talanta loans, which remain underutilised, regretting that many youths are shying away from taking loans, saying without borrowing they may not carry out meaningful development projects.

He urged youths who have benefitted from YEDF loans to repay on time so that they can move to the next level and also allow others to benefit from the same since this is a revolving fund.

By Maureen Imbayi