Skills development key in boosting informal sector

By Patrick Jaramogi

Building capacity through skills development is the only way to address the escalating poverty and unemployment levels, the Academic Registrar Management Training and Training Centre (MTAC) has disclosed.

Ronald Hiirya urged entrepreneurship and business management students to use the skills to strengthen themselves economically.

“It is through such training interventions that you will either have your salaries increased or get promotions,” he told students at the Masaka and Mbarara MTAC campuses.

Hiirya who was visiting the MTAC branches in western Uganda revealed that the centres were opened to take services closer to the people.

“As long as hundreds of students continue to graduate without appropriate skills, getting jobs will continue to be a problem to this country,” said Hiirya.

Evas Titwe an Entrepreneurship and Business Management student from Mbarara said before MTAC opened shop in Mbarara, many business people who wished to enhance their business skills were trekking to Kampala. “When institutes bring services nearer to us, it reduces the costs of refreshing our skills in business and management among others,” she noted.

Justus Mwesigye, an accounts and finance student noted that with the short courses, the working class was able to juggle between working in government departments and studying in evenings and during weekends.

Karanzi Nabeeta, the acting executive director MTAC emphasised the need for scaling up educational skills through vocational education as the fast means to address the increased unemployment levels.

“We are even going further by helping our brothers and sisters, the Jua Kali experts from places like Kisenyi and Katwe to get formal skills in craftsmanship development,” said Nabeeta.

Trade minister, Amelia Kyambadde, said it is only through empowering Ugandans with appropriate skills that will help them sustain their livelihoods that the country will fight poverty and unemployment.

Nabeeta told New Vision that short skilled courses in tailoring, hair dressing, bakery, shoe making and job creation awareness had been designed to help Ugandans start earning than seeking jobs.