In abid to address escalating unemployment among youth and women, Uganda Small Scale Industries Association (USSIA) has offered to train youth in enterprise development.
Ms. Veronica Namwanje, the Executive Secretary for USSIA while addressing participants at Imperial Royale Hotel in Kampala, also urged their members to utilize the available resources to increase value addition for their Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).
According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), youth unemployment in Uganda increased from 6.54% in 2021 to 6.58% in 2022.
The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS) has also released new poverty rates using a revised poverty line. According to the revised line, the national poverty rate in 2019/20 was about 30 percent, being closer to but still lower than the international poverty rate of about 42 percent.
Eunice Wekesa, USSIA Chairperson, said their organization is in partnership with Trade Facilitation Office- Canada (TFO-Canada),a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) for resource mobilization to support local SMEs.
She said TFO-Canada will support SMEs in Kenya, Uganda and Lesotho to align with their strategic priorities for self reliance.
Mr. Gyeriva Kyalimpa, a wood processing SME proprietor from Fort Portal, hailed USSIA for supporting him and his other colleagues to travel to Germany for a study tour which enabled him to expand his business tremendously.
“When I lost my job in Kampala in 2001, I went back to Fort Portal to engage in wood business. However with support from USSIA, I have managed to grow my business and now employ over 20 people in my enterprise”, Kyalimpa said.
USSIA is a registered membership Non-Governmental Organization formed with the aim of creating a forum and structures for supporting and enhancing growth in the Small Scale Industrial sector of Uganda.
USSIA primary mission is to lobby for resources and advocate for growth of SMEs, which also includes advocacy on industrialisation.
USSIA is spread across the four Regions of Uganda and we are the best Association in the country, which won the Private Sector Foundation- Uganda (PSF-U) Award last year”, she said.
Last year USSIA won Private Sector Foundation Uganda business association award of the year
