Africa-Press – Uganda. The East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) boss has warned that youth who are reluctant to acquire hands-on skills will struggle to get employment in the near future even when they have university degrees.
EACOP deputy managing director John Bosco Habumugisha insists hands-on skills are transformational and can quickly change his fortunes.
“If we don’t do that now, we are going to have a mass of useless educated Ugandans in the near future who contribute little or nothing to the country’s economic transformation,” he remarked during the graduation and hand over of start-up kits for 39 Project Affected Persons (PAPs) of the Crude Oil Pipeline project from five districts of Sembabule, Gomba, Lwengo ,Kyotera and Rakai who benefit from the skilling project coordinated by ASIGMA , an advisory an management firm.
Habumugisha added that: “As a country, we should endeavor to skill the youth before they join university.”
He noted that equipping PAPs with skills will enable them get opportunities and increase their capacity to start their own jobs.
The kits are part of the package for PAPs under the Livelihood Restoration Youth Skilling Programme which aims at enhancing the livelihoods of beneficiaries in the pipeline corridor.
David Nanambi Wakyiku, the managing director ASIGMA ,said their target is to positively impact lives of over 1,640 PAPs households (12,800 individuals), who are mostly youth and women) by creating sustainable earning opportunities.
“We expect the trainees to use the donated kits to change their lives, not selling them. We shall keep monitoring them to assess their progress,” he emphasized.
The beneficiaries were trained in a number of vocational programmes, among which included motor vehicle mechanics, hairdressing, tailoring and garment designing, wielding, building and plumbing. Others included catering, secretarial studies, bricklaying, carpentry and electrical works.
EACOP is a 1,443 kilometre infrastructure project that will transport crude oil from Kabale-Hoima to the Chongoleani Peninsula near Tanga in Tanzania.
The report system includes 1,443 kms of insulated and buried 24inch pipeline, six pumping stations, two pressure reduction stations and a marine export terminal.
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