IS IT REALLY POSSIBLE FOR THE YOUNG PEOPLE TO CREATE THEIR OWN JOBS? IT IS POSSIBLE 100%
"Where is the Job? We do not even have money for capital. Please ask Government to offer us jobs or donate each household money. We do not have land to dig.... " This statement was made by some Social Media Pundit in Acholi. These kind of statements from the young people come amidst million calls from political, social, cultural and opinion leaders asking youths to create their own jobs. In Uganda, 78% of the population is under the age of 31. while about 700,000 young people reach working age every year in Uganda, only 75,000 jobs are available.
Most time when children are being brought up and taken to schools, they grow up thinking that, upon finishing their studies, government, organisation or a company will eventually employ them. Months after graduation, real life begins to appear different from the perception accumulated when at school.
After completion of education, a few of your colleagues will get employed. With zeal you continue walking streets posting your resume to different offices. Days turn to weeks, weeks to months, months to years. Energy begins to go down and looking around, you find your colleagues who never studied are also struggling in their different capacities with hardworking and wise ones fairing well, others taking their killer alcohol as usual. Of course these learned can see other youths doing productive activities and their lives are changing, but because they tend to think that since they obtained first or second grade, first or second class, they tend to lift and grade their lives in accordance with their papers.
The wise, irrespective of their educational attainments, appreciate that the world of today is hard and dynamic that requires flexibility. Those who have suffered most are the ones that refer to selling meat, chapati, farming and others, as jobs of low class people.
A number of testimonies and experiences have proven that it is possible for the
young people to create jobs by themselves;
I went to School of Education, Gulu University together with some focus young man. Upon completion of his education, he celebrated his achievement and kept his document in a safe place in his grassthatched house. He did bricks and sold, where he generated less than a million Uganda shilling. He started moving to Longo Subregion, buys and transports goats to Gulu for sales. His customers started getting jealous because the young man's life was changing, and they stopped buying goats from him, because of this, the man was forced to learn how to slaughter and sell goats' meat. He later expanded his connection with the farmers locally where he buys goats from them and supplies restaurants and some hotels. At the moment, the young man is now a school director. When he was being despised and looked down on, we were busy putting on our neckties, hurrying to people's companies where we are given big titles like managers, credit officers and data associate with little token as salaries.Years down the road, we still wait for salaries or new projects.
During our days at the University, we also had another friend in the University Guild leadership. He is from Central Uganda, the young man managed to save some money and started selling fresh pork in Gulu town by then, his business grew and he decided to bring his people from Central Uganda to help run his other businesses.
A farmer in Gulu district started his Bee keeping project with two old vehicles tyres and now he has about 200 beehives. He has become a model Farmer, inspiring many young people to join the venture.
People will tell you all sorts of things; the government is fighting us, the policies in place are very harsh, the economy is too complicated and many other discouraging words, but as a young person, you should ask why others are succeeding amidst the same environment. Young people need to realize that life is not a game of cards or simple rides, life is a dynamic and complicated thing, and for you to challenge it, you should be very flexible and harder than life itself. You should be hard like saguaro tree that no matter the harsh conditions in deserts, they remain standing. I can not refute other people's claims that the government is responsible for the afflictions in Acholi land, that is their opinions and they are entitled to it, but my question is, are we supposed to remain down when somebody knocks us down or we are supposed to rise and continue struggling? Jeffrey Gitomer said Obstacles can not stop you. Problems can not stop you. Most of all, other people can not stop you. Only you can stop yourself." Acholi had issues with Amin's Government, Obote's government and also with president Museveni's government in the early days of the regime. There is also likeliness that Acholi may still have issue with the regime of any other president be it Hon. Robert Kyagulanyi, Hon. Norbert Mao or Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba. As I implore the young people to rethink about jobs and business opportunities around them, it's also very healthy to evaluate ourselves as Acholi people. For those who think the sitting government is our problem, will Acholi problems end immediately with the departure of this government?
This world, particularly social media gives you everything, . A lot of people will tell you that there is no job and they can not bother themselves, yet they have businesses and farms fairing well, but just confusing the young people. They will tell you that there is no land for agriculture yet they have their own more than 10 acres and still hiring more. Social media has opportunities, peace, wisdom, immorality, reality, false, violence and many others, it's upon you to choose things that can add you value.
In a nutshell, it is very important that the young people accept the world we are living in, appreciate it and flexibly start finding ways out. Unemployment is a global challenge and no country in this world is exceptional. Do not sit waiting that the government or another government coming will create enough jobs for all the job seekers. Let us start something just like Arthur Ashe said "Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can" Am telling you this not because I am rich or successful, no! I am just trying to share my thoughts together with you, so that as young people, we develop together.
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