FINANCIAL LITERACY IS VERY CRITICAL IN ADDRESSING YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT IN UGANDA

 Over 70% of Ugandans are below the 30 years. Universities graduate over 400,000 students per year. A MasterCard Foundation report recently showed that over 12% of the graduates are unemployed. A recent media article showed that over 50,000 university graduates were boda boda cyclists. This is not to undermine the role that boda bodas play in enhancing the lives of the youths. The key message is that the challenge of youth unemployment needs to be  addressed. The government has played a critical role in providing opportunities for the young people in  terms of programs such as Youth Livelihood programs and Parish Development Model among others. There are so many development partners that are skilling youths and indeed these are steps in the right direction. Commercial banks such as Equity Bank have enhanced the lives of many youths through providing free financial literacy training and access to affordable loans.

As a financial literacy trainer/coach for the past 5 years I have been providing grassroot training across the country . I have appreciated the fact that the youths are very enterprising and resilient. The youths have the zeal to work if well guided. I have mentored university students who full of potential. The glaring gap is that some of the youths are not well prepared for the world of work. With the fast changing workplace alternative means of livelihood need to be initiated . A number of youths are poor at handling their finances. A headline in the Daily Monitor of May 2024 showed that many young people were addicted to gambling. So if the youths are the majority in the country and find gambling as a means of survival then we need to address this habit. The report showed a number of youths are in financial distress because of gambling and some drop out of school. It even showed that students up to university level divert tuition to gambling. Others sell off their valuable property to address their gambling needs.

The above show the intentional grassroot financial literacy training is a great intervention in enabling the youths to realize their potential. For a long time a number of youths are a victim of circumstances. A certain youth revealed after a financial literacy training that he lived hand to mouth with the belief that he will get more money the next day. So many youths are living in financial darkness because they lack the knowledge and skills to address their poor money management habits. 

With financial literacy training I have seen so many youths whose lives have been transformed because of attending training. There is a particular youth who had no job but after attending a financial literacy session he altered his financial habits and opened a bank account. Today he is a seasoned entrepreneur employing other youths. This shows that so many other youths have the potential to change their lives with the right intervention of financial literacy. Another example is a group of youths who formed an investment club after university with limited capital and today it is a big company that is worth billions.

HOW TO MANAGE FINANCES BETTER 

1.Have a long term vision for life

2.Create a savings plan

3. Save as you earn

4.Research before you invest

5.Create a budget.

The destiny of Uganda and the world is in the hands of the youths. Unfortunately it is in jeopardy if the youths are not trained to handle their money better. The above statistics are a wake up call for urgent action. However all hope is not lost.

For individual and corporate financial literacy training contact :

Coach Phillip Kiryowa 

Personal Finance Coach (CMA)

Certified Master Trainer Bank of Uganda 

Founder , Advanced Empowerment Link

0752615916

For Financial Freedom and Sustainable Enterprises 

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