Gov't urged to change its funding strategy

Charles Ocici, an expert and a trainer in entrepreneurship skills has asked government to change its funding strategy especially in poverty and unemployment alleviation schemes, to focus more on skilling the youths and mindset change.

He said that instead of giving the youth money to venture into the private sector to start up an income generating activity, 50-80% of the money should be invested in changing the mindsets of the youth to prepare them for the rugged terrain in the private sector.

"All the schemes should address the main entry requirement to the private sector, and that is mindset building. Entrepreneurship is a skill and not knowledge and it takes time to horn it. No amount of money thrown to the youths will create an entrepreneur," he said.

Ocici, who is also the executive director of Enterprise Uganda, explained that the lack of skills and a proper entrepreneurship mindset is the reason why government schemes on poverty alleviation and tackling youth unemployment are not picking up or have failed to fetch the desired effect.

Over the years, government has come up with funding projects such as Entandikwa, Bonna Bagagawale, Women Fund, Youth Fund, Operation Wealth Creation, National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) and the Youth Livelihood Fund, to help alleviate poverty and unemployment in the country, but with minimal success.

Ocici noted that the reason why most of these projects have failed is because when the money is released the first idea presented by the beneficiaries is taken as the ultimate business concept with no room for one to venture into other initiatives.

He said the schemes have no structural follow up strategy on the implementation of projects, have a short term outlook to enterprise whereby people are expected to turn into prolific entrepreneurs overnight and do not inspire action, self-belief and independence.

"The reasons why schemes do not perform is because we concentrate on imagining capital as a principal factor in enterprise start up and we also ignore the lessons learnt from failed start-ups," he said.

He said that entrepreneurship is a game with its own rules that one must follow in order to succeed and this rule is defined by 2Cs; Competition and Choice, something one master's over time through taking action, studying the market and expansion.

He was speaking during the National Youth dialogue held at Hotel Triangle on Tuesday, in preparation for the 9^th Commonwealth Youth Ministers Meeting that will take place at the Commonwealth Resort in Munyonyo between July 31 and August 4.

The dialogue was organized by the National Youth Council (NYC) and was attended by the various district youth leaders, legislators and Civil society Foundations.

Blessing Ismail, the Oyam district youth chairperson said that government is equally responsible for the failure of these projects because it focuses much on soft skills. He asked government to appropriate a budget for a mindset skill development.

Martin Katanta, from Kanungu said that the reasons why the youth projects fail is because decisions are made in boardrooms without the involvement of the youths and later imposed on them without ascertaining what their needs are.

"The disabled are left out. The environment is not favourable for them to become entrepreneurs for example I cannot access the money just because I am blind," said Musa Mwambu a PWD youth leader.

Speaking at the event, Florence Nakiwala Kiyingi, the state minister of Youth and children affairs said that she will lobby the Commonwealth body to have a special youth fund that can trickle directly to the youth to finance their activities.

"We have an opportunity to make sure that youth development is placed at the core. During the meeting, we shall agitate for a fund that will come directly to the youths," she said.

She revealed that in the next financial year, the youth in Uganda shall have their own vote in the budget and will have money allocated directly to that vote.