Nandi senator at a past Senate session. Cherargei has proposed review and guidelines by PSC on government internship programs. Photo: Samson Cherargei X.
Nandi senator has written a proposal to the Senate for the Public Service Commission (PSC) to review and raise the monthly stipend for government interns currently receiving KSh 15,000 and KSh 30,000, depending on ones educational qualification.
In his petition, the currently proposed amount is not enough for interns in cities like Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu, where he argued that the cost of living is high.
“The stipend offered to PSC interns is insufficient with an average stipend ranging from KSh 15000- KSh 30,000 per month, which is not sustainable especially to interns living in major cities like Nairobi, Mombasa and Kisumu, where cost of living is too high,” Cherargei stated in his petition.
According to Cherargei, the role of PSC in ensuring graduates get permanent jobs and other networking opportunities cannot be ignored, but also challenged the program’s inability to provide interns with enough time to grasp the skills and a clear pathway for employment.
” Internship opportunities are limited in number, skewed in distribution across government departments and agencies, lack clear pathway to permanent employment, have inadequate opportunities for skill development due to the short duration that is offered.
He proposed that the Ministry of Public Service and Human Capital Development together with PSC, to review the PSC Internship Program of October 2019 factor his new proposal to award interns and increase their stipend.
“The Senate resolves that the CS Ministry of Public Service and Human Capital Development in consultation with the PSC reviews the guidelines to the Public Service Commission Internship Programme of October 2019, with a review to increase the stipend of interns to cushion them against the high cost of living, and put in place mechanisms to promote and reward innovations by interns,” Cherargei proposed.
In accordance with the October 2019 Guidelines on Management of the Public Service Internship Program, the Commission has been offering internship opportunities in the country, for a period of one year with no renewable terms.
