Digital Opportunity Trust Kenya (DOT Kenya) has initiated a capacity building programme targeted at young people to help them to recognize their full potential and access the opportunities around them by harnessing the power of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs).   This pioneering programme is targeted at unemployed and underemployed youth, and seeks to nurture an entrepreneurial spark within them.

This programme is called ReachUp! and as the name suggests, the programme is designed to help community participants search within themselves for their strengths, skills and passions and use these to REACH up and out for opportunities in the world around them, while embracing and exploiting the power of ICTs to do so.  The ReachUp! programme offers young people an opportunity to better their lives by helping them to create sustainable livelihoods.

The ReachUp! programme is delivered by young, energetic, and dynamic university and college graduates.  These young men and women exhibit a passion for ICTs and recognize the possibilities that are opened because of them and want to ignite the same spark amongst their peers and their communities.

The DOT Kenya ReachUp! Interns are the first beneficiaries of the programme.  They undergo comprehensive training to prepare for their eventual placements in the communities such as facilitation skills, coaching skills and presentation skills.  The training also offers the Interns valuable skills demanded by the job market such as communication skills, advocacy skills and project management.

The ReachUp! programme was initiated in November 2006 and DOT Kenya ReachUp! Interns are delivering this programme to youth and community based organisations in partnership with DOT Kenya."

" The entire internship programme, from training to the community placement, has helped me to discover my gifts and has greatly increased my confidence.  As a result, I feel I am more marketable and enlightened."
- Samson Muigai, ReachUp! Intern, DOT Kenya

"I already had several ideas for a business in my head even before I went into the training.  I was considering two ideas - a printing business and a soap making business.  During the training, the Interns took us through a resource called the Matrix.  After I did this I realized that the printing business was not viable for me because it was too capital intensive.  I then chose to concentrate on the soap making project because I felt it was something that I could achieve."
- Said Noor, ReachUp! beneficiary