President Museveni has announced a plan to create a dedicated fund for university graduates who remain unemployed two years after completing their studies, expanding his government’s wealth-creation initiatives to address graduate joblessness.
Speaking at a campaign rally in Namisindwa District on Saturday afternoon, Museveni said the proposed University Graduates Fund will operate through regional Saccos to help young people access start-up capital for small businesses.
The scheme will specifically target university leavers who have failed to find work for at least two years.
The President also revealed that government has resolved to inject an additional Shs15 million for local leaders to access credit, alongside new allocations for religious and cultural leaders, boda boda riders, and ghetto youth.
He said the new initiative mirrors the financing model of the Presidential Skilling Hubs, where Shs50 million is disbursed annually to district Saccos as revolving capital for skilled graduates.
During the rally, some beneficiaries of the skilling programme shared testimonies, including a single mother who said she used a Shs200,000 cash reward from State House to start a salon in Manafwa Town Council.
She now employs six young people and trains several others.
If implemented, the University Graduates Fund will join a growing list of government wealth and employment programmes such as Emyooga, the Parish Development Model (PDM), the Agriculture Credit Facility, the Women Empowerment Programme, the Youth Livelihood Fund, SAGE, SEGOP, and initiatives for persons with disabilities.
“We are saying: use the money we are sending you to get out of poverty. We shall continue sending that money — we can even increase it,” Museveni told the crowd.
Bunambutye East County MP John Musila hailed the proposal, noting that Namisindwa has many unemployed graduates who are “a product of the NRM government’s investment in education.”
Supporting them financially, he said, would “complete the equation” by turning them into job creators.
Namisindwa Youth Councillor and NRM flag bearer for District Chairperson, Ema Bwayo, welcomed the plan as “a timely intervention to counter rising youth unemployment,” but cautioned that the fund should be accompanied by business incubation, entrepreneurship training, and mindset change programmes.
“Government can finance ideas, just like the Youth Livelihood Fund did, but graduates need additional skills,” Bwayo said.
“Unlike school dropouts who often start small and grow steadily, many graduates struggle to navigate business realities.”
Museveni used the rally to urge citizens to focus on wealth creation through commercial farming, value addition, and service-oriented ventures, saying these sectors offer greater potential for employment than the limited number of government jobs.
Saturday’s rally was part of the President’s ongoing campaign tour of Bugisu, where he continues to appeal for public support ahead of the 2026 general elections.
