Skilling initiative takes root

Hillary Muhumuza, 28, is a welder with two years of experience. Muhumuza received vocational skills training from Katwe Metal Fabricators Clusters in Kampala in 2017, courtesy of Skills Development Facility (SDF).When he completed his training, Muhumuza was hired as a welder at Let's Imagine Workshop in Kampala.

"I dropped out of school in Senior Two and started hawking goods. However, one day my friends told me about the skilling Uganda project," Muhumuza says.

Hailing from Kyenjojo district, Muhumuza decided to come to Kampala to try his luck in acquiring skills in welding.

"Welding has enabled me to earn and I am working towards acquiring more skills. I have also become a trainer," Muhumuza says.

He is working towards having his own welding company and training less privileged youth. Right from the age of 10, Muhumuza's dream was to become a welder after seeing welders who were constructing a church.

"I love to design objects, such as doors, chairs, windows and beds. Whenever I am working, I give it my all and that is why my skills are developing," Muhumuza says. The training, which is being carried out by Q-Training Ltd, follows a grant from SDF.

CAPACITY BUILDING

The grant is aimed at building capacity of Q-Training for accreditation from OPITO or ECITB and become an accredited testing facility (ATF) under the American Welding Society (AWS) for competitive welding skills acquisition.

Paul Peter Odocochan applied to be part of a training programme in welding. Odocochan, who hails from Pakwach district, joined the Nakawa Vocational Institute for a Certificate in Fabrication in 201314.

This was after he completed O'level. He says with the training, his welding skills have greatly improved. Moses Semulimi, the director of Katwe Metal Fabricators Clusters, says with the grant from SDF, they have enrolled 76 trainees in welding, metal fabrication and motor vehicle mechanics. This is for a period of four months.

"We are privileged to have the training done by instructors from Nakawa Vocational Institute. We thank the Private Sector Foundation and SDF for the support," Semulimi says.

The Uganda Skills Development Project (USDP), worth $100m, was initiated by the Government, through the education ministry, to implement foundational reforms that would operationalise the Business, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (BTVET) strategic plan.

USDP is a five-year project funded by the World Bank. It was approved in April 2015 and became effective in October 2016. USDP targets enabling programmes to meet skills needs in key priority sectors of the economy. These include agriculture, construction and manufacturing, in line with Plan (NDPII) as well as Vision 2040.

Through SDF, a component of USDP is co-financed by the private sector through a matching grant contribution. This component is supporting training activities that will lead to improved productivity and competitiveness in the formal and informal sectors.



INTERNSHIPS

The head of SDF, Ruth Biyinzika, says SDF provides subsidies to private companies willing to take on interns and give them complementary short-term practical, technical and soft skills.

The SDF can support internship with the duration of up to four months. Employers also complain of lack of skills among graduates from  formal education institutions. Skilling Uganda is coming in handy to train Ugandans the skills they need in the employment world.

"Some of the interns have been retained in these companies whereas others have been able to get jobs elsewhere compared to students that have not done internship. Other interns have started their own businesses," Biyinizika says.

The facility aims at addressing prevailing skills imbalances and shortages in Uganda. A total of sh34.7b was committed as grants for skilling 46,556 employees, interns and members of companies and organisations as of December 31, 2018 and a total of sh13.9b had been disbursed. It is two-and-a-half years since SDF started.

Biyinzika says as the facility continues to register success, other sectors, such as tourism, hospitality, transport and logistics will be included.

"Uganda has a lot of potential in tourism, which needs to be exploited further and enhance the required skills," Biyinzika says.

A total of 57,574 (of these, 47% are women) beneficiaries have been enrolled to benefit from the skilling programme (against a 28,875 project target). The actual skills training is largely hands-on, practical training.

A total of 32,034 have so far completed the training (against 28,875 project target) in the varied trades and a wide range of skills



CO-OPERATION

Private Sector Foundation Uganda (PSFU) executive director Gideon Badagawa says to be successful in imparting skills in the private sector, there is need to work together and build partnerships for the different industries and associations so that the unit cost of training is reduced.

"The intervention SDF is making in equipping the youth with skills is a fundamental one. This is because human resource is paramount for any business. Employers and entrepreneurs are looking for these skills, which are hard to find," Badagawa says.

PSFU aims to strengthen the private sector capacity for effective policy advocacy and market competitiveness nationally, regionally and internationally.

An impact assessment of the grantees has been conducted, to prove that the facility has registered improvement through efficiency and productivity.

Also, an impact assessment measuring the level of satisfaction of the trainees indicates that there is growth from 10% to over 80% due to the fact of being empowered with knowledge to execute their work.