The Uganda Communications Commission (UCC), through the Uganda Communications Universal Service and Access Fund (UCUSAF), is enhancing innovation and creativity in local content to spur job creation in the creative industries.
This initiative responds to widespread youth unemployment and the demand for locally relevant digital content, in line with the country’s National Development Plan II (NDP III).
This program, which is being implemented in eastern Uganda districts of Mayuge, Bugiri, Pallisa, Busia, and Soroti by Prime Time Communications, is called Skilling Youth Groups in ICTs and Multimedia.
It aims to empower youths, specifically young women, with ICT and multimedia content development skills to create sustainable jobs in the creative industry and other sectors.
This will enable them to earn significantly and fully participate in the economy while eliminating barriers that often prevent young people, particularly young women, from reaching their full potential.
The program is enabling young people to build their capacity to adopt ICT tools and applications in multimedia content production and related business processes, enabling them to fully participate in Uganda’s economy and at the international level,” explained Denis Jjuuko, Team Leader at Prime Time Communications.
Jjuuko told Nile Post that empowering young people and entrepreneurs with multimedia content production, storytelling skills, and an introduction to various ICT platforms that provide access to markets and networking linkages is important in the 21st century.
“The program is empowering youths, including young women, with the 21st-century skills they need to effectively use multimedia platforms and ICT applications to create and transform their businesses and promote their talents,” he added.
Hussein Muyonjo, a popular comedian known as Swengere, who was the guest speaker at the training in Mayuge District, gave the youths firsthand practical experience they need to succeed.
“The internet and the availability of devices like smartphones have enabled us to create content that can be commercialized,” Muyonjo said.
“Take the skills you are getting seriously and apply them to your situation. It could be in content creation or using platforms like LinkedIn to find work,” he advised.
“Don’t spread fake news, though, because people will eventually find out that you are not truthful and will not believe your content,” he cautioned.
According to Sandra Nakakfeero, the head trainer, she is optimistic that by the end of the training in eastern Uganda, 500 youths will have received various skills, including using artificial intelligence and content platforms to find or create sustainable jobs.
Increasingly, jobs are becoming elusive for young people, as they are being replaced by emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and other automation systems.
According to the World Bank Digital Transformation Drives Development in Africa Report, increased accessibility of internet services, particularly broadband, has enhanced affordability and service quality, leading to digital inclusion.
In turn, this digital inclusion has had a positive impact on job creation and poverty reduction.
In 2023, the World Bank flagship report found that in Nigeria and Tanzania, extreme poverty declined by about 7% after three or more years of exposure to internet coverage, while labor force participation and wage employment increased by up to 8%.
However, for the economy to thrive, there is a need for more than just infrastructure.
One way of addressing this challenge is by ensuring that a sizable, skilled, tech-savvy workforce exists.
Many of Uganda’s youth earnings are too low, largely because of a lack of employable skills. The median monthly cash earnings for people in Uganda is a paltry Shs200,000, according to the Uganda National Labour Force Survey 2021.
Yet, those are the lucky ones to have a job. In 2021, 49% of the working population was employed (10 million). For young people, the numbers are even more overwhelming.
At least 41% of youth, which represents 9.3 million aged between 18 and 30 years, are not engaged in any productive activity (neither in education, employment, nor receiving training), according to findings in the Uganda National Labour Force Survey 2021.
For the majority of these people, jobs will increasingly be found in self-employment. However, the education provided today is not sufficient to address this gap.
Self-employment in emerging sectors, such as the creative arts, provides an avenue through which the youth can create sustainable jobs for themselves and others.
However, the youths lack the technical skills to create multimedia content, use existing highly scalable platforms, and leverage these platforms for self-promotion of their talents and businesses, attract audiences, and participate in various revenue-sharing opportunities that these platforms provide.