Labour Russell Hixson January 18, 2021 VANCOUVER ISLAND UNIVERSITY — Beatrice Nyariki, registrar for Kisii National Polytechnic in Kenya, shakes hands with a Vancouver Island University carpentry student during a campus visit. Vancouver Island University (VIU) is working to develop trades training programs for Kenyan schools as part of the Mastercard Foundation’s five-year Young Africa Works in Kenya-TVET initiative. The initiative focuses on encouraging young Kenyans, particularly underrepresented groups like women, to enter workforce training programs. VIU is one of 15 Canadian post-secondary institutions participating in this new initiative created in partnership with Colleges and Institutes Canada and the Mastercard Foundation. For VIU’s portion of the initiative it will be collaborating with Durham College and Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning as part of a $360,000 project to strengthen and support technical and vocational education and training at three Kenyan institutions: The Kisumu National Polytechnic, The Sigalagala National Polytechnic and Kisii National Polytechnic.