Unveiling WHCUG-Mastercard Foundation Partnership
Women Health Channel Uganda is excited to unveil its landmark partnership with the Mastercard Foundation on the “Bridges to Work” project.
Currently, Uganda has the second youngest population in the world over as 72 percent of its 45.9 million citizens are under the age of 30 (Uganda Bureau of Statistics, 2024) .
The Uganda National Labor Force Survey 2021 indicated that, 9.3 million youths aged 18-30 (41%) are not in school, work or training and Busoga region, is among the hardest hit as it hosts 14% of Uganda’s poorest. Significant portion of young people in Busoga have no source of livelihood.
These live on less than one dollar, and can’t afford more than one meal a day neither do they access social amenities such as education and health care.
As such, the Bridges to Work project that Women Health Channel Uganda has started implementing in Jinja City, Mayuge and Jinja district in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, is directing interventions targeting young individuals lacking the market relevant
skills to ensure they are equipped with soft skills pertinent to the green economy.
The project will enable young people to create secures of livelihood particularly those in agribusiness who
are missing out on opportunities for value addition, marketing, and linkages to larger markets.
This project not only will address immediate employment and entrepreneurship opportunities but also aligns with long-term environmental sustainability goals, aiming to create a workforce that contributes positively to both the economy and the environment. We are excited and hopeful as well, this pilot project, will transition 400 financially disadvantaged youths aged 18- 35 years into work (70% young women and 3% PWDs) with an outreach of 800 participants over the twelve-
month course (September 2024-August 2025).
