Access to Job Market: Findings from A Venture Development Program for Marginalized Unemployed Youth in Kampala Uganda

Abstract

Majority youths (uneducated/unskilled) in Uganda face challenges identified with unemployment and high-risk practices. An estimated 78 % of Ugandan youth are jobless, need economic capital and life skills. The high rate of unemployment is principally brought about by the absence of employable skills, the lack of capacity of the economy to create as many jobs for the unskilled youth and the ever-increasing population driven by the rural-urban drift. The survey used a mixed methodology where semi-structured questionnaires were used to obtain both quantitative and qualitative primary data using the electronic devices (KoBo Collect software) to conduct the interviews, reaching a total of 770 marginalized youths. Findings from the survey show that vocational skills training, business, career guidance, multi-mixed behavioral and psychological interventions are major determinants of access to the job market for marginalized slum youths. To address youth unemployment, this article underlines the need for interventions that fall outside the regular limits of training and other labor market programs. Numerous young people looking for better jobs and livelihoods are indebted by variables that are not commonly considered in these programs. These incorporate, for instance, lack of access to credit which deters business enterprise. This article has featured solutions important for young people looking for their livelihood in self-employment and entrepreneurship.