Recently, I made an application for an attachment at a local government(name witheld) and I was asked to present a clearance certificate from Criminal Investigations. Bear in mind, I was still schooling, and the attachment was manadatory for me to be listed on the graduation list that was months away. Every Kenyan job-seeker would tell you how it pains, having to get all the savings to pay for requirements asked in an interview, as a matter of fact, a job you are not sure you will be granted the opportunity. Do you know of anyone who has undergone the struggle a well? Every year job-seekers are being locked out of the job market because of the requirement to pay for the clearance certificates, which amount to a prohibitive total cost of Sh4,500.
These documents are issued by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, the Higher Education Loans Board (HELB), the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission and the Credit Reference Bureau. Nominated Member of Parliament, Gideon Keter, has drafted a legislative proposal which if passed will waiver fees incurred by youths or persons with disabilities in acquiring clearance certificates when seeking employment.
Keter’s Employment Amendment Bill 2018 seeks to waiver fees on Certificate of Good Conduct, Higher Educations Loans Board (HELB), Credit Reference Bureau (CRB) and Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission certificates. “The Cabinet Secretary shall waive fees imposed on a person categorized as a youth or as a person with a disability, where it is mandatory to obtain the requisite clearance certificates in accessing employment at first instance,” the bill reads in part.
According to the MP, the waiver would help the youth access more employment opportunities. “Employment is a major concern to all Kenyans at the moment; reason being a youthful individual seeking employment is required to produce the required documents needed to pass for a job interview. More often than not that amount of money needed to furnish self with the documents is a problem,” said Keter.