The Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga has highlighted the need for government to make the necessary interventions to improve the livelihood of youths in the country.
Speaker Kadaga said this on Monday while addressing the second Uganda Youth Business Forum at Kampala Serena Hotel in Kampala which was organized by the Parliament Forum on Youth Affairs.
The forum ran under the theme ‘Building Strategic Partnerships for Sustainable Youth Entrepreneurship and Development’.
While she acknowledged there are numerous Funds targeting youths, she said that they haven’t exhaustively benefited the youths.
Kadaga cited programs such as the Youth Livelihood Program, the Youth Venture Capital, the Youth Fund most of which have not benefited the youth sufficiently due to a poor approach.
“There is alot money in this country scattered here and there and if we were to manage it, we would all register victory. Let us use the budget framework paper to influence better allocations to the youth,” Kadaga said.
“Sometime you wonder what is wrong with people in government, because the Student’s Graduate Scheme Bill was tabled in the House, but the Minister refused to give us a certificate of financial implication. However, I recently ordered that we proceed with the Bill without the certificate,” Kadaha said.
She faulted the Minister for Finance for dragging processes that serve to benefit the young population. Kadaga as well wondered why numerous innovations by Ugandans and mostly the youth continue to go unnoticed.
“This is what prompted me to organize an innovation week at Parliament to enhance the work of the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology (ICT),” Kadaga mentioned.
As is the case in the other Funds, the Speaker said that majority of the youths have no idea how to access the Innovation Fund which was established to support innovations in Uganda.
“I don’t know how to access the Innovation fund, and if I don’t know, how will the youth know how to access it? As government we should style up,” Kadaga said.
At the event also attended by the Youth MP for Western Uganda, Mwine Mpaka, the Speaker launched a report on the state of youth in Uganda.
MP Mpaka appealed to government to consider more investment in programs targeting the youth and supporting sectors like entertainment.
