Empowering the youth through libraries to achieve resilient communities

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OPINION

By Amanda Irene Birungi

After its oil, minerals and fertile soils, Uganda’s other major untapped resource is its young people. Yet, we fall short when it comes to exploiting the extraordinary potential of this demographic, especially in shaping cleaner, greener and more resilient communities.

In a country where 14 million adolescents and youth, aged 15-30, make up 31% of the population, it is astonishing that only a fraction participate in community decision‑making or development processes. Even more worrying, the UN Population Fund (2025) reports that 22% of adolescents, aged 13-18, have dropped out of school, while 8.8 million youth, aged 15-24, are not in education, employment or training. This is not just a statistic — it is a national emergency, but also a national opportunity.

What if we re-imagined community libraries and youth centres as engines of environmental action? What if the very young people that society labels as ‘idle’ or ‘unengaged’ became the champions of cleaner cities, towns and villages? This is not a theoretical question. It is already happening in Kawempe division, Kampala.

In June 2024, I conducted a study to investigate the greening initiatives carried out at Kawempe Youth Centre and community library, and what I found was transformative. The library and youth centre is not merely a building with books, but also a hub for various environmental innovations, civic participation and community-resilience outreach activities. 

One of the initiatives is the Ghetto Go Green project. Launched in 2023, it mobilises the youth to confront the environmental crises of the plague in Kawempe. From flooded drainage channels and collapsing homes to damaged sewage systems, poor sanitation and the increasing impact of heavy rains. Through waste management drives, recycling campaigns and tree-planting activities, the youth are not just cleaning their neighbourhoods; they are reclaiming their dignity and agency. The project also hosts a community youth parliament supported by the Network for Active Citizens. Every quarter, the youth, women, local leaders and residents debate issues such as drug abuse, sanitation, education and financial literacy.

Another greening activity at Kawempe Youth Centre and library is the; buli maka ne basin (meaning: Each household and a basin). The initiative was started to tackle climate resilience and improve food security in slum homes with limited space, particularly in Kizza, Kisowera and Kirokole zones of Kawempe North division. 

Households are encouraged to grow vegetables like tomatoes, carrots, onions, amaranth (dodo) and kale (sukuma wiki) in a basin. Kawempe Youth Centre purchases and distributes seeds to homesteads. Residents displayed remarkable creativity, using all sorts of available items for planting, including multi-purpose sacks, abandoned construction sites and repurposed refrigerator units.

However, the creative re-use of refrigerator units highlighted the need for environmental education on the proper removal of some of the components in disposed refrigerators before re-using them. Improperly disposed fridge and freezer units can release toxic refrigerants and ozone-depleting gases that can potentially harm the environment, ecosystems, as well as pollute water sources.

Environment-related education and training are crucial, and Kawempe Youth Centre and a library are a step ahead in the right direction. Offering training and practical sessions through programmes such as the Seed Science project, which was started in partnership with Seed Science Italy.

The MindUp project focuses on empowering women, men, single parents, and caregivers with entrepreneurship and financial literacy training as well as organising health- and sanitation-related talks. The Global Girls Glow project, which empowers girls to express their views, build self-esteem, confidence, leadership and communication skills.

Regular talks are held on encouraging girls to stay in school. The Brass for Africa project promotes youth participation in music and sports. The youth, including girls, compose songs and create performances to raise awareness about climate change, pollution and tree planting. 

Clearly, Kawempe Youth Centre and library have gone beyond issuing reading books, study areas and computers with internet connection to providing spaces for community education, ICT training and many more. All of these initiatives and projects target mainly the youth and residents of the Kawempe division.

The goal is to create awareness on sustainable living, health and environmental stewardship. The model of the youth centre and library is not just admirable, it is replicable. It demonstrates that when youth are given space, tools and trust, they rise to the occasion. Community libraries — often overlooked and underfunded — can become the beating heart of local climate action.

The writer is a PhD student in information science at Makerere University