Presidential Candidate Prof Venansius Baryamureeba has pledged to set up regional industries in order to create employment to absorb jobless youth in the country.
Addressing a gathering at Gulu Main Bus Park in the heart of Gulu town on Friday, Baryamureeba says the industries will provide university graduates opportunities for gainful employment.
Baryamureeba did not explain during the rally where he would get the funds from to create the regional industries.
Youth unemployment in Uganda is one of the highest in Africa. A recent study, ‘‘Lost opportunity Gaps in youth policy and programming in Uganda,’’ published by ActionAid, put youth unemployment at 62%, although the African Development Bank says it could be as high as 83%.
Uganda has the world’s largest percentage of young people under 30 – 78% – according to the to the 2012 State of Uganda population report by the UN Population Fund.
Baryamureeba also revealed that a huge percent of his government’s annual budget will be injected into the agricultural sector. He pledged to revamp the sector which he says has been marginalized and yet it employs a majority of Ugandans. Baryemureeba explained he would do this through farmers accessing agricultural loans at low interest rates.
Other sectors that he pledged channel funds into are health, education and microfinance institutions.
The former Makerere University Vice Chancellor also promised to create regional governments in a bid trim the power of the central government.
He says the regional governments will have the powers to decide on behalf and in the interest of the local people.
Francis Lubangakene, 23, a newspaper vendor who attended Baryamureeba rally says he wants to see health insurance put in place in order to enable the poor access quality health.
Lubangakene also lauded the presidential candidate for including education and agriculture as a priority saying it will resolve the problem of underemployment among the youth especially in northern Uganda which is recovering from a 20 year- old insurgency.