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The Head of the Investor Protection Unit (SHIPU) in the Presidency, Colonel Edith Nakalema, today held a fruitful meeting with the country’s top academics.
The meeting was held at the SHIPU office in Kampala to brainstorm on how to address the challenges of unemployment and wealth creation among Ugandan youth.
Col. Nakalema told the academicians that Uganda’s population mainly consisted of young people and as stakeholders, they should make every effort to address the issues that affect them if a country is to achieve the desired socio-economic transformation.
“Young people aged between 0 and 35 years account for 82 per cent. In practice, this means that most Ugandans are young people,” she said.
She said over the years, the government has introduced several interventions such as the Youth Life Fund, Presidential Skills Training to create jobs and wealth for the youth.
However, Col. Nakalema noted that despite these efforts, challenges still persisted and ultimately led to popular dissatisfaction.
She therefore advocated a holistic approach to addressing the challenges to enable the youth to progressively contribute to national development.
“To ensure that interventions that address the challenges faced by youth are successful, targeted, focused solutions must be developed to address their unique challenges.”
Colonel Nakalema also commended the Vice-Chancellor of Makerere University, Professor Barnabas Nwangwe, for ending the strike at the university.
“We haven’t seen a Makerere University student strike in over five years,” she said.
Professor Nawangwe suggested that the government take several measures, such as national service, to keep graduates productive and avoid living on the streets.
“Make the most of these graduates by mobilising them appropriately. Due to the large population we have, the first group that must be dealt with is the graduates because they have the organisational power and expectations,” he said.
Professor Nawangwe further stressed that Uganda’s large population of unemployed graduates could become a source of instability if not properly addressed, but it could also become a trigger for socio-economic development if well managed through targeted programmes.
“All the riots I see happening across the country, the root of it is the graduates. Every time people riot, they put a school back a few years.”
Prof. Nawangwe proposed the Uganda Graduate Employment and Entrepreneurship Transformation Scheme (UGEETS) to leverage the skills of graduates to drive socio-economic transformation at the grass-roots level.
“The main social benefit of the program is to reduce crime and social tension, thereby reducing civil unrest and improving the living standards of the population,” he said.
“From an economic perspective, it is estimated that the program will stimulate economic activities and increase productivity by at least 10 percent, thereby contributing at least Sh1 trillion in revenue to Uganda in the fifth year of implementation.”
Dr Ben Mbonye, a healthcare practitioner and consultant, noted that youth unemployment, especially among graduates, is a security threat that can put a country in dire straits.
He further explained that there are many challenges in society that require skills to solve. However, he revealed that the training system (skills) in Uganda is not meeting the needs of society.
“We have to do market research to understand the social needs. Then we combine that with the training we will provide so that we don’t get rotten material,” Dr Mbonyi said.
He also suggested that to address the problem of jobless graduates on the streets, the government should set up institutions to provide technical and practical skills to young people and then let them start their own businesses.
“This is a precautionary safety measure,” he said.
Associate Professor Bruce Kirenga, Director of the Institute of Pulmonary Research at Makerere University, highlighted practical strategies to help the country develop through the development of a knowledge economy.
“The knowledge economy is a large part of the national economy. According to the American Chamber of Commerce, IP-intensive industries account for more than a third of GDP. In Uganda, we have a sleeping giant but no one is paying attention to it,” Associate Professor Kirenga said.
Professor Gerald Karyeija, a senior lecturer and policy analyst at the Uganda Management Institute (UMI), has called for a review of national youth policies and strategies to align them with the current needs of the younger generation.
“We need to completely rethink our policies to adapt to the new trends.”
He also stressed that initiatives to empower youth are fragmented and need to be integrated to be more effective.
Former Attorney General Fred Ruhindi suggested that as stakeholders, they should work towards building hope for the younger generation.
“We should continue to engage with the youth at different forums so that we can give them hope.”
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