The government has addressed a viral notice circulating on social media claiming that the second tranche disbursement of the NYOTA business start-up capital has been suspended.

In a statement on Wednesday, May 20, MSMEs Development Principal Secretary Susan Mang’eni assured beneficiaries that preparations for the nationwide release of funds were still ongoing and that the process would be completed soon.

The clarification came after a purported media release claimed that the second disbursement had been suspended due to economic and fiscal considerations. 

Addressing the reports, Mang’eni stated that the government remained committed to the programme and asked the public to rely only on official communication channels.

“We acknowledge inquiries from NYOTA Project beneficiaries and the general public regarding the 2nd tranche of the NYOTA business start-up capital disbursement.

“The Government is working on the nationwide disbursement processes, which we expect to finalise soon,” she said.

Mang’eni noted that beneficiaries would be informed once the process is complete.

“Once complete, we will announce through the official communication channels and broadcast a live media address on all mainstream media stations,” she added.

This comes over a week after the government dismissed a notice circulating on social media claiming that beneficiaries of the NYOTA Project had completed mandatory business training and would begin receiving Ksh25,000 start-up capital from Monday, May 11.

In a statement on Sunday, May 10, MSMEs Development Principal Secretary Susan Mang’eni clarified that the notice is fake and urged the public to disregard it. 

The viral document, bearing the Ministry of Co-operatives and MSMEs Development branding and the NYOTA logo, falsely claimed that the second classroom business skills training had been completed successfully across the country and that disbursement of start-up capital would commence immediately for eligible beneficiaries

However, the image has since been marked as fake news, with the government distancing itself from the contents.

“Ignore such purported ‘updates’ circulating on NYOTA start-up capital disbursement. We shall communicate officially in the coming days on when the disbursement will take place,” Mang’eni said.

The Principal Secretary further encouraged beneficiaries under the NYOTA business support programme to remain focused on growing their enterprises as they await official communication from the government.

“In the meantime, we encourage our NYOTA business support beneficiaries to continue building their businesses and sharing their success stories,” she added.