144 young Ugandans complete UNDP–Refactory digital training

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The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Refactory Academy have sent 144 young people into the job market equipped with fresh digital skills.

The cohort is part of the Skills for Digital Jobs Initiative, a training programme launched earlier this year to prepare youth for work in fields such as data science, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, product design, cloud computing and software development.

Organisers enrolled 217 learners, which was higher than the original target of 150, a rise they said showed strong demand for practical and industry-aligned skills. Completion stood at 96%.

Of the 68 graduates that UNDP and Refactory have monitored so far, 33 have landed jobs or internships. Another 68 out of 97 tracked separately have started small ventures.

“We have been implementing a partnership with UNDP focused on skilling young people into work,” Michael Niyitegeka, team lead at Refactory Academy, said.

“There are certain jobs that are going to be reduced in the market because of the level of automation for process efficiency.”

Uganda has seen rising mobile connectivity, more digital services and a widening appetite for technology-based solutions in recent years.

Niyitegeka said training young people for these emerging roles is one way to grow a workforce that can compete regionally and help shape new industries at home.

UNDP said it plans to keep backing efforts that help Uganda build an inclusive, future-ready labour force.