Mr President, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni Tibuhaburwa, allow me to address you, although this time around not as a member of NRM or your supporter but as a professional youth worker, Youth Advocacy Foundation Uganda-YAFU and many other youth-centered organizations, associations, groups, or agencies where I either sit on their board or where I am equally a founding member.
I have been part of the youth movement, done activism, public policy influencing, advocacy on different platforms that bring together youth, policymakers, government agencies and international development partners. Part of my work is all over internet!
Allow me to write the truth and uncensored! I hope your security apparatus doesn’t call or summon me for threats because I am writing to my President, the Fountain of honor.
Your Excellency Sir, our National Resistance Movement (NRM) has not taken the youth demography seriously as it ought to be. Yet this demography is a potential force to either create a secure or insecure Uganda!
Therefore, engaging them politically for economic development should be a continuous agenda. Uganda is blessed with very creative, innovative, and enterprising youth. I have met with, interacted with, supported them in many different small ways like dynamics of forming associations, legalizing business enterprises, having constitutions for associations, groups, Community Based organisations (CBOs) NGOs & SACCOs!
YAFU and our partners have equally engaged youth in financial literacy, skills development through our different platforms like the National Skills Development Expos, our partners’ Annual Youth Festival etc.
Youth have formed SACCOs, Associations, groups and etc! But what next?
The Youth Livelihood Fund is no more! The Youth Capital Venture Fund can only be used as a reference in what the Government tried to do for the youth in business to access credit!
And one of the reasons why companies or enterprises started by youth do not last to celebrate their second birthday is that there is no youth-friendly credit access! This we have sung over and over again!
Skilling the Girl Child, yes, the project could have given skills, small capital and, equipment especially in Kampala but has it been extended to other parts of the Country? The answer is no!
Your Excellency, Emyooga was largely dominated by adults, and by the way, even those adults never got funds that would get them out of the poverty trap! But put them into more loans that groups will not even be able to pay!
My neighbor in Kahengye, Jamilah Namara got ugx210,000 yet she had spent about sh190,000 within the group so as to process the money! Wasn’t this hot air to Ugandans especially the youth?
Operation Wealth Creation (OWC) has not supported or targeted youth as they distribute farm inputs for example in my entire ward of Eastern Ward formally Kabingo division, the same applies to adults!
Yet every time a Government official or politician comes for burial or public event or even on media, they tell youth to form SACCOs, groups, associations, and nothing follows next!
When did NRM, the mass party, and the Government in power become a party of lies?
During campaigns/elections some groups got some Government money, state house and you personally used to deliver equipment to some youth groups!
Some groups, SACCOs, Associations were promised during even 2011, 2016, and even now 2021, they have never got anything!
Ugandans will start not to take you or NRM as seriously! In fact they are already not taking NRM leaders not seriously, just as a batch of liars! Only that some are still silent and choose not to speak about these issues in public for fear of being branded moles, terrorists by the security apparatus and those Ugandans who think they are more NRM than you the Chairman.
Your excellency, it is high time, our NRM Government deliberately put in place policies that create an enabling environment for youth entrepreneurs to thrive, let every District give contracts/tenders that do not exceed sh25Million to the youth companies.
More accessible credit schemes should be put in place specifically targeting the youth.
Tax/trading licences for youth companies should not be levied for at least 3/5 years.
There should be a full-fledged department under OWC that looks at Youth in agriculture and gives incentives, inputs specifically to youth.
Under the Parish Development Model (PDM), youth committees are equally vital so as to directly and strategically position their needs and demands as well as spend the vote on their specific issues within the parish. A holistic peer-to-peer approach must be applied.
NRM leaders at all levels including your ministers and handlers should avoid being arrogant to the youth and not tell them lies but give guidance, nurturing, and give the right information.
Remember, youth are a fundamental resource to invest in and time is now, not in the future during campaigns or elections.
If there is money, tell them there is money, guide them on how to access this money, how to use it for sustainable livelihoods but not hoodwinking them with rhetorics!
Will be sharing more proposals and youth demands in the near future!
For God and my Country Uganda.
AKAMPA Tanbull ca be reached on
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