SOROTI, August 15, 2024 – President Yoweri Museveni has called on the Ugandan youth to shift from growing rice to fish farming in order to conserve the wetlands, which he said play a great role in supporting the ecosystem.
Museveni made the remarks while officiating at the International Youth Day Celebrations held at Soroti Core Primary Teachers’ College, Soroti district. The celebrations ran under the theme: “Skills Development for enhancement of youth opportunities”.
The International Youth Day is commemorated every year on 12th August, bringing youth issues to the attention of the international community and celebrating the potential of youth as partners in today’s global society.
Museveni encouraged youth to engage in fish farming at the edge of the swamp for survival and then use the center for watering their plants saying swamps are for grass that is used for mulching
On the other hand, Museveni advised the school going children to work with their parents during holidays to stabilise their homestead income.
“Many people don’t know that some of us were influenced by the way we grew up. Like in my case I was a wealth creator from the age of 4. Age of 4 my job was to look after the young cows. By the age of 8, I was looking after the big cows. The children in holidays should participate in wealth creation,” he said.
“I would advise the parents not to over exploit the children like we were exploited. My children and grandchildren now don’t have the same pressure like I had.”
He further emphasised that when children are still in the school system, they should always participate in sports and exercises so that they are fit. He also advised that they should spend their youthful years doing useful things.
To address the issue of unemployment, Museveni pledged that government would give start-up capital to youth who have attained skills from vocational institutes so that they can create their own jobs.
Museveni also said that he will construct a multipurpose hall to commemorate the youth celebration which will be built here in Asuret Core PTC.
The President also cautioned the youth against environmental degradation. “The misuse of swamps must stop. The swamps are for water to feed the dry land.”
On the other hand, Museveni commended the people of Teso for fighting poverty through commercial agriculture.
“I can see most of the people in Teso are now out of the grass thatched houses and most of them are growing citrus fruits. I have put up new people to look after the factory and we shall stabilise the market.”
The Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Betty Amongi said the theme of the celebrations resonates with the fact that skills are important for the realisation of opportunities of the youths, and it addresses the high numbers of the youths who are not in employment, not in school and not in the formal sector.
“The recent National Population and Housing Census of 2024 put the youths between 18 to 30 years at 10.4 million, representing 22.6 percent. Youth between 30 to 34 years are 2.8 million, constituting 6 percent. Children between 0 to 17 years are 23.1 million which constitute 50.2 percent. This makes Uganda one of the youngest and most rapidly growing populations in the world, with about 4 percent population growth and 78.8 percent of Uganda’s population are now under the age of 35,” she said.
The Minister also decried the lack of skills and competence among the youth, saying the factors deter them from effectively entering the job market.
“More than 1 million young people enter the job market every year. This presents both a huge opportunity but also a challenge. The 2021 Uganda National Labour Force Survey showed that employers across formal and informal sectors in Uganda identified lack of practical, digital entrepreneurship skills as well as soft skills such as managerial, communication, social, emotional as limiting most youths from entering the job market,” she noted.
“They also assert that our education system is not fully aligned with the Labour force needs leading to a mismatch of skills and competence for employability.”
The Minister of State for the Youth and Children Affairs, Balaam Barugahara assured the youths that the government is working around the clock to ensure that the challenge of unemployment among them is dealt with.
“Your Excellency, investing in youth skills development is crucial. Such investment supports national peace and stability, enhances resilience and promotes social transformation,” he noted.
The UN Resident Coordinator in Uganda, Susan Ngongi Namondo called for renewed efforts to ensure that the 73 percent of Ugandans under the age of 30 years are engaged in productive adulthood.
“We have to redouble efforts to ensure that there’s hope across the board,” she said.
The Ambassador of Denmark to Uganda, Signe Winding Albjerg said the Youth Day commemoration was very vital because it aims at celebrating the contribution of the youth towards development especially in leading digital adoption and innovation across the globe.
“Your Excellency, this day also reminds us all to highlight the challenges that young people face in order to be able to realise their potential. On this day, we should challenge ourselves to do more and better for the youths,” she said.
The Chairperson of the National Youth Council-Uganda, Jacob Eyeru thanked Museveni for guiding the youth to the right path of attaining education and creating jobs.
“The NRM government also dealt with the issue of our health through immunisation. Now we are dealing with the issue of socio-economic transformation,” he said.
He also commended Museveni for setting up the skilling hubs that impart skills to the youths across Uganda. This, he said, has helped to deal with youth unemployment in the country.
Hellen Adoa, Minister of State for Fisheries, said that the fish farmers are getting high yields, and earning more money.
The event was also attended by the Vice President Jessica Alupo, ministers, Members of the Diplomatic Corps, Members of Parliament, among others.
https://thecooperator.news/president-musevenis-statement-on-kiteezi-landfill-incident/
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