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Standard Chartered Bank Uganda in partnership with Challenges Worldwide, a Kampala-based business development consultancy have today launched the scale-up of the Youth to Work (Y2W) phase IV programme worth UGX832 million.
The launch, at Fairway Hotel, was presided over by the Commissioner for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives – Dr. Joshua Mutambi.
“Youth to Work” is the flagship employability project under Futuremakers by Standard Chartered Foundation. It is the Bank’s global initiative to tackle inequality and promote greater economic inclusion for young people in local communities through the pillars of Entrepreneurship, Employability and Education.
Phase IV of the project will support 90 graduates directly, in transitioning into employment as well as train over 1200 youth within the community.
The Youth to Work approach uses a 4-month work placement-based youth-led initiative to equip young people with employability skills and partner them with local SMEs to provide structured Business Development Services (BDS). This prepares unemployed youth to become work ready, equips them with skillsets demanded by the private sector and helps prepare them for work in business and/or entrepreneurship. Additionally, it is geared towards strengthening Small & Medium Enterprises (SME) ecosystems that lead to greater employment and job creation potential for young people.
The junior associates evaluate key business areas such as sales & marketing, financial management, operations and human resources. They also provide analysis and create an action plan with recommendations for improvement, thereafter these solutions are implemented together with the SME staff.
Since 2019, the programme has invested in 198 graduates that have provided business development support to 121 enterprises. Of these, 50% were females, 50% were males, and 8.5% were Persons with Disabilities. It has also bridged the gap between beneficiaries and ecosystem players. Within the larger community, over 450 enterprise staff have benefited from business capacity building and 3695 youth from employability, entrepreneurship, and wellbeing training as part of Youth to Work.
Sanjay Rughani, CEO Standard Chartered Bank while addressing the participants said;
“As a Bank, our intention is to fundamentally transform the lives of the youths by enabling them to build their own bright futures and navigate the various challenges they are faced with. This is in line with our brand promise, ‘Here for good’ which demonstrates our commitment to stand by our clients and our local communities. We will therefore continue to work in partnership with several NGOs and the Government to strengthen the capacity of young people and people with disabilities, through employability skills so we improve their chances of getting jobs and their entrepreneurship skills to empower them to start up their businesses.”
Mr. Rughani further said that the additional UGX832 would go towards supporting more young professionals to become catalysts for positive change in business and communities across Kampala.
“The funding from the Standard Chartered Foundation comes at a time when our country and indeed the world over, is recovering from the devastating impact of the pandemic. As a Bank, we commit to continue Lifting Participation of the youth and women in the economic decisions that are made regarding their livelihood and training and skilling them in readiness for employment,” he added.
The Challenges Worldwide Country Lead – Uganda, Ms. Hendricah Nabukwasi said that the Youth to Work programme “supports young people who have struggled to find employment with the skills they need to secure employment or pursue business ventures of their own”.
“The initial pilot phase was launched in 2019 for a 6-month period to benefit 40 youths at a cost of UGX300,000,000 and Phase II was unveiled in 2020 and benefited 120 with an investment of UGX920 million while phase III benefited 45 youths at a cost of UGX430 million. Over 58% of the participants in this program have transitioned into employment or entrepreneurship 3 months after their programme participation,” she said.
Dr. Joshua Mutambi, on behalf of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, appreciated Standard Chartered for investing towards “tackling inequality and promoting greater economic inclusion for young people in local communities”.
“I also commend Challenges Worldwide and the participating SMEs for effectively running this programme for the past three cohorts and transforming lives,” he added.