Young achievers award to boost youth skills
Tetea Uganda and the Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry started the Annual Young Achievers Awards (YAA) last year to inspire the youth by awarding them for excellence and innovation.
Tetea Uganda and the Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industry started the Annual Young Achievers Awards (YAA) last year to inspire the youth by awarding them for excellence and innovation. They hoped to address the pressing issue of unemployment through promotion of job creation and alternative skills training programmes, especially vocational skills. Carol Kezaabu talked to Gilbert Beyamba, the YAA coordinator.
Question: To what extent can the awards make Uganda’s youth create their own opportunities?
Answer: The awards are a great motivator of entrepreneurial creativity and innovation but they can only make a contribution to mindset change.
The overall economic-political system in our country has to be changed from dependency to independence.
There are no simple answers to the rising youth unemployment. Innovative educational programmes have a key role to play.
In what way can inspiring the youth to be job creators take Uganda’s economy forward?
Inspiring the youth to be job creators will contribute to the development of our economy.
At YAA we advocate practical skills development. Our education should be more practical to help the youth to adapt to the changing world and be able to use those skills in creating employment and earning an income.
In which areas do you see the most potential for the youth to awaken their entrepreneurship spirit?
I do not want to generalise. Uganda is a developing country which needs to harness entrepreneurial skills from every area to move from a low developing country to a developed country.
You need to look at the Singapore story in which small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have a major role in every sector of the economy, accounting for 50% of the work force and 30% of the value added in the manufacturing sector.
SMEs are key in driving the nation forward economically in agriculture, science and technology, the arts, media and entertainment, education, medicine and many others.
What are your expectations from the 2010 Young Achievers Awards?
We expect to have more nominees compared to last year since we had a two-month nomination period.
We expect to reward about 112 winners, since we introduced four new categories, increasing them from seven categories last year to 11 categories this year, to cover a section of the workforce we felt was not aptly represented in last year’s edition.
I also expect to have a better follow-up technique through mentorship, skills training, availing low interest loans, financial literacy training and, where possible, access to markets.
If we do this annually, we would be able to reach out to as many young people as possible.
What makes a great story worth an award?
The way the individual started out is the most important thing.
What was their inspiration? Why did they choose the work, the idea or the path they have taken? What value have they added to the company? Above all, we are looking at the impact nominees have had on the society or people around them.
How do you verify the nominees’ stories?
We ask the nominees to identify two referees on their applications. The company processing the nominations will talk to these referees and, where necessary, go out and verify the story themselves. We also give room for people to submit proof in form of a video recording, product samples or testimonies from people.
Question: To what extent can the awards make Uganda’s youth create their own opportunities?
Answer: The awards are a great motivator of entrepreneurial creativity and innovation but they can only make a contribution to mindset change.
The overall economic-political system in our country has to be changed from dependency to independence.
There are no simple answers to the rising youth unemployment. Innovative educational programmes have a key role to play.
In what way can inspiring the youth to be job creators take Uganda’s economy forward?
Inspiring the youth to be job creators will contribute to the development of our economy.
At YAA we advocate practical skills development. Our education should be more practical to help the youth to adapt to the changing world and be able to use those skills in creating employment and earning an income.
In which areas do you see the most potential for the youth to awaken their entrepreneurship spirit?
I do not want to generalise. Uganda is a developing country which needs to harness entrepreneurial skills from every area to move from a low developing country to a developed country.
You need to look at the Singapore story in which small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have a major role in every sector of the economy, accounting for 50% of the work force and 30% of the value added in the manufacturing sector.
SMEs are key in driving the nation forward economically in agriculture, science and technology, the arts, media and entertainment, education, medicine and many others.
What are your expectations from the 2010 Young Achievers Awards?
We expect to have more nominees compared to last year since we had a two-month nomination period.
We expect to reward about 112 winners, since we introduced four new categories, increasing them from seven categories last year to 11 categories this year, to cover a section of the workforce we felt was not aptly represented in last year’s edition.
I also expect to have a better follow-up technique through mentorship, skills training, availing low interest loans, financial literacy training and, where possible, access to markets.
If we do this annually, we would be able to reach out to as many young people as possible.
What makes a great story worth an award?
The way the individual started out is the most important thing.
What was their inspiration? Why did they choose the work, the idea or the path they have taken? What value have they added to the company? Above all, we are looking at the impact nominees have had on the society or people around them.
How do you verify the nominees’ stories?
We ask the nominees to identify two referees on their applications. The company processing the nominations will talk to these referees and, where necessary, go out and verify the story themselves. We also give room for people to submit proof in form of a video recording, product samples or testimonies from people.