Mercy Corps, the global non-government organisation, on Tuesday launched a partnership with the African Executive Leaders Solutions (AELS) to create work opportunities for refugees and youth in informal settlements in the Makindye and Kawempe divisions in Kampala.
Under the partnership, AELS will work closely with the Directorate of Industrial Training (DIT), a directorate under the Ministry of Education, to bridge skills gaps among refugees and host communities through modular assessments, at the end of which successful candidates will be issued worker’s passes and other forms of accreditation that can give employers the confidence to demand and pay for their skills or services.
The platform will enable target audiences to identify their unique strengths, improve their skills and competencies, and secure meaningful learning and earning opportunities, all this while focusing on work-based learning that is not limited to internship, trainee opportunities and apprenticeships.
The pilot program – set to run for five months – will enable participants to access job opportunities through a public platform, Ichuzz2work, that connects skilled workers from the informal sector with job opportunities.
Uganda is currently the second-largest refugee-hosting country in the world, after Lebanon. Its hosts about 1.4 million refugees – mostly from South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, and Somalia – making up about 3.6 per cent of the country’s population. However, 64 per cent of the refugees living in Uganda are unemployed, according to a January 2021 report by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.
“This partnership is an exciting opportunity for Mercy Corps as it’s part of our bigger mission to identify and test technology-enabled solutions to tackle youth unemployment and accelerate job creation” said Edward Simiyu, the Mercy Corps Country Director for Uganda.
“We believe one way to address the country’s unemployment crisis is to focus on the potential of digital technology. Online platforms are becoming a new income source for thousands of talented and innovative young people who otherwise would be left on the side lines,” Mr Simiyu added.
“The online platform bridges the gap between the service workers and their clients, enabling a quick and convenient access of the services. The clients have an opportunity to make choose individuals they think fit their budgets, thus creating value for both the workers and employers.”
Patrick Ngolobe, the chief executive officer of AELS said: “The Ichuzz2work platform is open to the general public to access a variety of skilled services such as plumbing, electrical wiring, building, tutoring, welding, hairdressing, computer programming, marketing, farm management, among others.
“The taskers on the platform are accredited by DIT, have been mentored and trained in their specific fields of expertise, and are also trained in interpersonal and customer relations to enhance professionalism as they offer their services to the general public. All accounts created by jobseekers on the platform are verified.
“The solution has been designed to cater for georeferencing whereby only taskers within a 20km radius from the client posting a task get an alert. This is intended to increase turnaround time for service delivery and reduce operational costs, so as to have competitive pricing for the tasks.”
Mr Ngolobe added that there are no charges for registering on the platform, posting a job, or receiving money from clients.
The ichuzz2work app also enables signing digital contracts, reporting contract breaches, and indicating when taskers are available for jobs. Clients are able to rate taskers on a five-star scale, with better rated taskers suggested first for future tasks. AELS also projects an average income of $30 to $500 for most of the jobs done by taskers on the platform.
The BPRM Urban Consortium
Mercy Corps Uganda, in partnership with the International Rescue Committee (lead agency), and the Urban Refugees and Young African Refugees for Integral Development (YARID) is implementing the U.S. Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (BPRM) program titled “Enhancing the Resilience of Urban Refugees and Vulnerable Host Communities in Kampala through an Integrated Protection and Livelihoods Approach”.
The program is now in the 20th of a 34-month period. Its overall goal is enabling the most vulnerable refugees and host communities in Kampala to be more resilient and empowered through evidence-based, innovative strategies that strengthen existing local structures to promote long term sustainability and protection of community members.
The consortium’s partners include the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, the Department of Refugees at the Office of the Prime Minister, the Kampala Capital City Authority, associations bring together refugees, and several other organisations in Kampala.
About Mercy Corps Uganda
Mercy Corps is a global NGO that has operated in Uganda since 2006. Its interventions focus on market-oriented solutions (currently valued at over $60 million) that include: food security; agriculture and livestock market systems development; peace building, youth economic productivity; and resilience.
Mercy Corps runs programs across Northern Uganda and in Kampala. Its interventions include equipping individuals and households with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to improve their access to markets, livelihoods, health, nutrition, and security, in order to improve their overall resilience.
Mercy Corps has been responding to the refugee crisis in Uganda since 2016. Our interventions cover both the settlements in Northern Uganda, and urban centres where refugees have congregated. In 2020, our programs reached over 1 million Ugandans and Refugees.
About the Africa Executive Leadership Solutions
AELS designs solutions that support individuals, teams and organization to transform and achieve their desired goals and objectives.
Established in October 2016, AELS targets highly ambitious, results-oriented and resilient middle level managers in multinational organisations, the public sector, and innovative small and medium privately-owned organisations. It helps graduates acquire professional skills necessary for the workforce and get their career to a great start.
For information, please contact; Fredrick Mpaata, program manager, Urban Resilience Program at Mercy Corps.
Email: [email protected]
Patrick Ngolobe, chief executive African Executive Leaders Solutions
Email: [email protected]
