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Dr Moses Michael Odongo Okune (R), the Lango cultural paramount chief-elect hand over a piglet to one of the youth leaders in Alebtong District.
What you need to know:
- Lango Cultural Foundation and the Paramount Chief-elect, Dr Michael Moses Odongo Okune, encouraged youth to fight poverty and become self-reliant through productive activities.
In a bid to reduce poverty among youth in Alebtong District, at least 900 youth leaders from 68 parishes have been empowered with a Shs69 million piggery farming project.
The project, supported by Dr Mercy Faith Lakica, the Secretary for female affairs in Alebtong District, and other well-wishers, aims to engage youth in productive activities to improve their livelihoods.
“This marks the beginning of youth empowerment. We want to unlock their mindset and encourage them to take charge of their lives,” Dr Lakica said.
Uganda has one of the youngest populations in the world with 78 percent of the population below the age of 35 years old according to the (UNICEF U-Report 2022).
“The idea is that these piglets will later on multiply and we will have all executive members all the way to the village levels being empowered with these piglets,” she said.
Youth expressed excitement, seeing this as a chance for socio-economic transformation.
Mr Caesar Ongom, chairperson of Adwir sub-county youth, urged fellow youth to take good care of the piglets, promising to expand his farming projects.
“Am so much excited with the distribution of these piglets to us because when we keep these piglets well, they will produce more and at the end of the day improve our standards of living,” he said.
According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), youth unemployment in Uganda increased from 6.54 percent in 2021 to 6.58 percent in 2022.
Ms Barbara Akello, female youth representative, emphasized the importance of maintaining and multiplying the pigs, rather than selling them.
“All project team members will contribute in securing feed for these piglets until a stage when we are decided to start a pass-on scheme where every member has a chance to keep one at their homesteads,” she said.
Lango Cultural Foundation and the Paramount Chief-elect, Dr Michael Moses Odongo Okune, encouraged youth to fight poverty and become self-reliant through productive activities.
“Let’s make poverty our first enemy. Do not make poverty your friend. Engage in productive activities so that you can develop and if you do so, it will definitely bring glory to our culture,” Okune said.
This project offers hope for a brighter future, inspiring youth to become agents of change and break free from poverty.