SAFE‑MIT Kenya: Scaling Youth‑Led Migration Education and Awareness
By The Youth Café
Introduction
Migration is one of the most pressing issues shaping Africa’s future. For young people, decisions about whether to migrate are influenced by social expectations, economic pressures, and personal aspirations. Too often, these decisions are made without reliable information, leaving youth vulnerable to irregular migration, smuggling, and trafficking. The SAFE‑MIT project—A Shared Foundation to Protect Against Risks of Irregular Migration and Trafficking—was designed to respond to this challenge.
Funded by the European Union and implemented by ICMPD through the MMD Grant Facility, SAFE‑MIT has combined school‑based education with large‑scale social media campaigns to equip young people with the tools to make informed migration decisions. The Youth Café, as the implementing partner in Kenya, has successfully delivered the program in Nairobi, Kajiado, and Kiambu counties, reaching tens of thousands of students, training hundreds of teachers, and mobilizing millions online.
With the pilot phase completed, The Youth Café now seeks to mobilize additional partners to scale SAFE‑MIT nationally and regionally. This article tells the story of SAFE‑MIT in Kenya, highlights its achievements, and outlines the opportunities for donors, governments, and civil society to join in scaling this transformative program.
SAFE‑MIT: The Regional Project
SAFE‑MIT is a four‑country initiative spanning Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, and Kenya. Across the region, the project reached 632 schools, trained 1,252 teachers, and engaged more than 108,000 students. It also ran 638 social media campaigns, reaching over 50 million people, with influencer collaborations extending reach to millions more.
All of this content now lives on informedmigration.org, a free multilingual platform holding 168 pieces of tested material—lesson plans, handbooks, games, and quizzes. The Youth Café and YES Morocco hold ownership beyond the project, ensuring sustainability and continued use.
Kenya at a Glance
In Kenya, SAFE‑MIT reached 156 schools, trained 306 teachers, and engaged more than 27,000 students. Kenya contributed 25.5 percent of the total students reached across the region. The program was implemented in Nairobi, Kajiado, and Kiambu counties, chosen for their diverse demographics, migration pressures, and youth populations.
Social media campaigns in Kenya ran 90 times, reaching over 10 million people, generating 73 million impressions, and achieving 4 million engagements. Influencer collaborations added another 1.8 million in reach, with creators like Esther Kazungu and Ziya Africa amplifying messages through relatable, peer‑to‑peer storytelling.
Case Studies: Nairobi, Kajiado, and Kiambu
Nairobi: Urban Youth and Digital Engagement
In Nairobi, SAFE‑MIT worked with secondary schools to integrate migration education into curricula. Teachers reported that students were eager to learn about migration risks and opportunities, particularly in relation to job offers abroad. One teacher interview highlighted how students became more critical of online job advertisements, learning to verify legitimacy before making decisions.
The social media campaign resonated strongly in Nairobi, where 69 percent of followers were based. Hope‑based, 30‑second videos with clear calls‑to‑action performed best, challenging misinformation and sparking conversations about safe migration pathways.
Kajiado: Rural Communities and Aspirations
In Kajiado, migration pressures are shaped by limited local opportunities and strong social expectations. SAFE‑MIT interventions in schools helped students understand the realities of migration, including the risks of trafficking and exploitation. Teachers emphasized the importance of sustained engagement, noting that a minimum of two school terms is needed to embed behavior change.
Community dialogues revealed that many families viewed migration as the only path to success. SAFE‑MIT challenged this narrative by presenting alternative opportunities and emphasizing the importance of informed decisions.
Kiambu: Youth Employment and Returnee Stories
In Kiambu, SAFE‑MIT partnered with schools and local NGOs to deliver migration education. Students learned from returnees who shared their experiences abroad, highlighting both opportunities and challenges. These peer‑led stories generated trust and authenticity, reinforcing the program’s emphasis on relatable content.
Social media campaigns in Kiambu leveraged Sheng and local language to build authenticity. Influencer collaborations amplified impact, with Esther Kazungu’s scam‑literacy content teaching youth how to verify job offers.
Social Media Campaigns: Lessons from Kenya
Kenya’s social media campaigns demonstrated the power of hope‑based messaging. Fear‑based content was less effective, while positive stories of resilience and opportunity generated higher engagement. Relatable language, including Sheng, built authenticity and trust.
A/B testing, dynamic ads, audience segmentation, and boosted content drove broad and effective reach. Collaboration with influencers amplified impact, turning single posts into peer‑to‑peer conversations in the comments.
Local testing showed that clear calls‑to‑action improved results in Kenya, making it the only market where CTAs boosted engagement. This insight underscores the importance of tailoring campaigns to local contexts.
Key Learnings
From the educational outreach, approvals from key stakeholders such as the Kenya Institute of Curriculum Development, Ministry of Education, and Teachers Service Commission ensured seamless implementation. Sustained partnerships among consortium partners and active participation from teachers and learners made the biggest difference.
Challenges included aligning approval timelines with implementation, ensuring principals understood their role, and extending implementation periods to achieve behavior change. Recommendations for scaling include securing government approvals early, referencing evidence from the pilot, and extending program duration.
From the social media campaigns, hope‑based messaging, relatable language, and influencer collaborations worked well. Challenges included initial audience skepticism and limited stakeholder visibility. Recommendations include scaling a multi‑stakeholder approach, involving government agencies and civil society, and investing in peer‑led storytelling.
Opportunities for Partners
Scaling SAFE‑MIT requires collaboration. Donors can invest in expanding school outreach, training more teachers, and sustaining social media campaigns. Governments can integrate migration education into national curricula. Civil society can replicate campaigns in new counties. The private sector can support digital platforms and influencer collaborations.
Partners will benefit from visibility through national media coverage, branding at events, and recognition in reports. They will contribute directly to preventing trafficking, empowering youth, and strengthening communities. Most importantly, they will invest in a generation of informed, responsible citizens.
Conclusion: A Shared Journey of Safe Migration
The Youth Café’s successful implementation of SAFE‑MIT in Nairobi, Kajiado, and Kiambu has proven that migration education can empower young people, strengthen communities, and prevent exploitation. Scaling it up is not just desirable but necessary. It offers a pathway to embed migration awareness into Kenya’s governance culture, to empower young people as ethical leaders, and to build a society where safe migration is a shared national value.
Partners are invited to join us in this journey. Together, we can transform civic participation into long‑term investment in safe migration and youth empowerment. Together, we can scale SAFE‑MIT and ensure that Africa’s youth make informed, safe, and responsible migration decisions