Purposes of youth enterprise development fund on performance of youth run small and micro enterprises in Ruiru District, Kiambu County, Kenya

Abstract

This report is about a study titled, Purposes of the Youth Enterprise Development Fund on Performance of Youth Run Small and Micro Enterprises in Ruiru District, Kiambu County, Kenya.The objectives of the study were to;- establish the extent to which YEDF loans, through middlelevel financial institutions, affect performance of youth run SMEs, examine the extent of influence of YEDF sponsored business incubators on the number and type of youth run SMEs, determine how business linkages created by YEDF affect performance of youth run SMEs and find out how YEDF marketing initiatives impact on performance of youth run SMEs. The descriptive survey research design was employed whereby characteristics of the fund were described on a subset of the population. The target population was made up of 171 respondents. A representative sample of 117 respondents was selected according to Krecjie, Daryl and Morgantable. The study found out that loaning (funding) is not a factor in determining the number of employees a firm would wish to have. However, loaning affects the number of outlets a firm would have, and this, in direct proportion. Secondly, after market for goods and services, infrastructure is a second most important determinant of line of business an SME chooses. The study also found out that supplier/buyer relationship was deemed most important linkage an SME would wish to establish, and that all the SMEs with airy relationship had changes in annual revenue.Lastly, the study found out that ~r~ting improves sales in direct proportion. After conclusionof the study, it is recommended fha{more funds be channeled through the programme to have tangible effects on performance of funded SMEs, funding to each SME be increased to realize a bigger effect of the fund, the fund be diversified to include tangible assets that can be registered in group names and persons in charge of the fund formulate and implement strategies that would realize all the five purposes of YEDF and not just loaning. In conclusion, the fund is a noble idea that needs more resources and commitment by the relevant government department to realize more empirical and tangible results.