Uganda, a land-locked country in sub-Saharan Africa, is one of the countries where youth graduating from schools and universities find it very difficult to get jobs. According to a recent report by Action Aid International Uganda, Uganda National NGO Forum and Development Research and Training, 62 percent of Ugandan youth do not have any form of employment.

The poor policies and the lack of quality education in Uganda do not provide sustainable jobs to the youth in need, especially the ones doing arts courses. When considering the training of our next generation, the curriculum produces young people seeking jobs rather than entrepreneurs interested in creating their own business who can create jobs.

According to my experience as a student while still in secondary schools and university in Uganda, students typically spend 13 years in primary and secondary schools and subsequently enroll in university courses. There is a higher admission of students to university for studying the arts and other liberal arts courses with fewer students enrolling in scientific courses such as medicine or engineering. This is attributed to the high financial cost and time commitment to science programs. Additionally, few youth aim to pursue vocational courses, such as tailoring or catering, mainly due to a cultural and traditional stigma that these are less respected pursuits.

While practicing as a graduate nurse in Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital in 2011-2012, I noticed that even with the many job-seeking youth, there is still a staffing gap at hospitals and health facilities, especially in rural and semi-urban areas. Many youth opt for arts courses and the few students who purse medicine don’t want to work in rural areas. This is due to their poor attitude towards staying in rural and semi-urban areas; and a lack of leadership training advocating for Ugandans to stay and work in own country.

In May 2014, ACODEV completed a survey to identify solutions for the increasing levels of unemployment among youth in Uganda. Results found that, on average, the ratio of applicants to a single vacancy opportunity is 1:425; thus securing a formal job at an existing organization is a very competitive process. ACODEV also discovered that most unemployed youth are trained social or developmental workers. During this survey, we also invited young people to apply to a few employment opportunities at ACODEV like Project Field Assistants (PFA). Many of those that applied didn’t have even a single vocational skill or leadership training during their training at school. The candidates interviewed therefore suggested changes to the curriculum in schools from a theoretical to practical focus, including vocational and mentorship opportunities, allowing them to learn entrepreneurial skills. They believe this would be a solution to the high level of unemployment in Uganda.

In view of the above, ACODEV has developed a very strong internal capacity building of its staff as well as establishing training and consultation avenues for youth in the areas in which we operate. This helps to empower the next generation to make informed decisions. We do so through our Orphan and Vulnerable Children Project, Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health Project, our Vocational Center, and apprenticeship opportunities. Historically, we build capacity of institutions through leadership development which we’ll continue to do at our soon to-be African Center for Leadership and Development (ACLED).

Through our Orphan and Vulnerable Children (OVC) programming, many of the vulnerable children and youth in Kasese District villages are equipped with vocational skills such as catering, tailoring, wood/metal work, and farming. Therefore, ACODEV has not only helped to support the development and empowerment of youth, but it has also answered the call by the Commissioner for Youth and Children Affairs, Ministry of Gender and Social Development, Kyateeka Mondo. In one of his speeches in February 2014 while launching a report by Action Aid International Uganda (AAIU), Mr. Mondo said “we need a purposeful, focused and targeted education system for youth to avoid being duped in courses that are not relevant to the job market.”

Youth are like flowers that, if put to good use, can produce plenty of fruits. As such, through ACODEV’s project implementation, we believe Uganda will experience faster development of solutions to educational and vocational challenges.

 

(A student learning how to do sweater knitting at ACODEV’s Vocational center)

 

 

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