A depressed woman sitting against wall on floor looking out window. PHOTO | COURTESY
A comfortable life, family and good health rank among the important things for young people between the ages of 26-30 years.
This is according to the 2018 “Holla” study that surveyed young people across the country.
The
survey also revealed the extent to which cancer has permeated society
and the awareness of it by youth, with those interviewed ranking it up
there with HIV and Aids and death as what they dread the most.
Contrary
to the belief that young people are significantly different from the
older generations, this study shows that young people hold the same
values as the older generation.
Values
such as community welfare, respect for elders, caring for the extended
family and the idea of marriage for life are some of the key values for
Kenyan youth.
FIRST DRINK
Many
parents would be disappointed to know that 53 per cent of Kenyan youth
had their first drink under the age of 20 and their alcoholic drinks of
choice are beer, spirits and wine.
When
it comes to sexual debut, nearly all young people between the ages of
13-19 surveyed have already had their first sexual encounter, while 67
per cent of youth surveyed aged between 20-25 years had their first
sexual encounter below the age of 20.
Of
those interviewed, 61 per cent of youth aged between 13-19 years use
condoms as a mode of contraception, while injections remain the most
popular form of contraception—76 per cent—among the older youth between
the ages of 26-30 years.
When
it comes to their diet, young people give preference to fruits and
vegetables, meats, the staple meal of ugali, greens and meat, rice and
then bread. They prefer food that is easy and quick to prepare over food
that might take longer to prepare like chapati and mandazi.
MARITAL ADVICE
Relationships
play a significant role in the lives of many young people who turn
first to their family members for marital advice (54 per cent) followed
by religious leaders and professional counsellors at 25 per cent.
Interestingly,
when it comes to advice on sexual matters, young people would rather
get the advice from their friends (36 per cent) compared to family
members.
But what do young
people seek in relationships? The older they get, the more they prefer
friendships and romance in relationships. While the younger youth
between the ages of 13-19 prefer short term fun in relationships, older
ones tend to look out for long term relationships leading to marriage.
Kenyan
youth are increasingly becoming entrepreneurial, with many preferring
to run their own businesses compared to seeking employment.
Only 38 per cent of youth surveyed have a stable income, suggesting high unemployment rates.
EMPLOYMENT
When
asked what they would prefer between employment and self-employment,
only 16 per cent preferred employment compared to 49 per cent who prefer
to run their own business and 36 per cent who want to reap from both
employment and self-employment.
Gambling
remains a key recreational activity for Kenyan youth with 37 per cent
admitting to using gambling services to acquire more money.
Virtual mobile accounts, compared to saccos and chamas are the most popular modes of saving money for young people.
Thirty-eight per cent say they prefer mobile money to carry out their transactions like paying of bills.
Sixty-eight
per cent of young people have no form of insurance for reasons such as
lack of money, lack of interest, they deem it too expensive and lack of
knowledge.
Out of the minority
that have insurance, 90 per cent have medical insurance and the National
Health Insurance Fund topped the list of insurers amongst young people.
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