Youth Empowerment

The Umbrella of Hope is placing greater emphasis on promoting alternative livelihood strategies, and especially for youth. Our employment initiatives help close the gap between labor supply and demand to improve the income earning prospects of at-risk youth in the most rural communities in Uganda. In programs in Uganda, The Umbrella of Hope is providing vocational/technical education, life skills training, financial literacy, and entrepreneurial training that youth need to be competitive in their local job markets. We also help young people access opportunities to apply their new skills through apprenticeships or enterprise groups, where they can gain confidence and credibility in front of employers and clients.

Our focus in this area

The Umbrella of Hope’s youth employment programs equip deprived and at-risk adolescents and youth with the skills and job linkages they need to find decent jobs or build their own businesses so that they can make a successful transition to adulthood and break the cycle of poverty. We offer employability skills, entrepreneurship and vocational training, on-the-job training, career counseling and job linkage and business startup services to young women and men aged 14-24, living in rural and peri-urban communities, based on the needs of the labor markets, on the one hand, and the needs of the youth, on the other. Since 2011, we have assisted nearly 200 young mothers, out of school youths, youth working in hazardous conditions, and youth at risk of prostitution and trafficking. By 2020, we aim to reach 20,000 youth.

Youth Employment

Our youth employment approach integrates a menu of employability and entrepreneurship skills training with vocational training. Training is delivered through public and private school systems for in-school youth and through non-governmental organizations for out-of-school youth. Our programs follow a four step process:

1. Recruiting youth who meet our selection criteria and identifying labor market demand for youth employees;
2. Enrolling and preparing youth through market-relevant training and counselling;
3. Providing them opportunities to be placed in jobs, apprenticeships, internships or self-employment;
4. Tracking them to monitor their employment status and working conditions.

Once enrolled, all students receive employability skills training and then they choose either the job pathway or the entrepreneurship pathway. This flexibility allows youth to choose the training offerings, job linkage and self-employment networks and opportunities that better fit their own needs.

Our youth employment programs have also focused on engaging informal and formal sector employers directly to improve workplace conditions for youth.

Our partners include ministries and government offices of education, labor, technical and vocational education and training, and employment services; local government authorities; academic institutions; local organizations and service providers; socially responsible employers, trade associations, corporations and entrepreneurs; human resources companies and online job portals; and parents’ and youth associations.

How You Can Help

Charitable contributions from people like you make it possible for us to support these youths. Please support our mission and work in rural communities of Uganda. You can count on us to be good stewards of your generous donation, helping vulnerable children where the need is greatest with whatever they need the most.