Government starts skills development programme for local businesses

The target is people with little or no formal education but who are engaged in economic activities like agriculture and petty trade.

The Ministry of Trade and Cooperatives has rolled out a five-year entrepreneurship skills development programme aimed at creating new businesses and jobs.

The programme, which was launched on Friday, targets people with no or little formal education but are engaged in economic activities such as agriculture and petty trade so as to enhance the spirit of entrepreneurship.

While launching the programme, the undersecretary in the ministry, Mr Fred Ogene, said the aim was to save many small-scale businesses from collapsing.

More than 70 per cent of businesses never see their first birthday.
“Most of the businesses are collapsing because our people do not know how to invest. The entire spectrum of people doing business falls outside primary school and what skills do you expect them to have?” he asked.
The training will be conducted by the Management Training and Advisory Centre (MTAC) through its upcountry branches.

According to the executive director, Dr George Tumwesigye, the centre took on the programme following the “overwhelming demand” it received when it was tried it in Pader District last year.

However, Dr Tumwesigye called on the government to provide more funding to ensure it success and recruitment of more beneficiaries.

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