Prime
Govt seeks private sector support in youth skilling
Youths walking past merchandise being sold on streets of 'Down town' Kampala. PHOTO/FILE
What you need to know:
- Due to disruptions resulting from Covid-19, skills training, much of which is conducted online, has become an important aspect with the job market experiencing a lot of challenges.
Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development has asked the private sector to support government in youth skilling to improve the quality of labour.
Speaking ahead of the International Youth Day, State Minister for Youth and Children Affairs, Sarah Mateke Nyirabashitsi, said despite existence of government programmes, there is need for more support from the private sector.
“I appeal to the private sector to keep supporting us and implementing government programmes,” she said, noting that since 2014, government has invested about Shs169b in skilling and uplifting of about 250,000 youth.
The minister was speaking during the online graduation of the MTN Foundation Youth skilling programme, an initiative that seeks to equip youth with digital and technical entrepreneurial skills such as business taxation and book keeping among others.
Mr Brian Mbasa, the MTN Foundation senior manager, said the programme, which graduated 60 youth, seeks to support youth to establish businesses that have a trickle-down effect.
Due to disruptions resulting from Covid-19, skills training, much of which is conducted online, has become an important aspect with the job market experiencing a lot of challenges.
Currently, a number of companies have either frozen or capped employment while others are cutting jobs which makes job creation a necessity to close the largely widening unemployment gap.
However, Covid-19 has accelerated the advancement and adoption of technology, which has created a number of opportunities, especially for the youth.
Skills training, much of which is now focusing on youth, has been one of the ways through which government is seeking to change the employment narrative from job hunting to job creation. However, is still faces a number of challenges due to low financing.
