KAMPALA, UGANDA — The East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) Ltd. has equipped 456 young people from households affected by the project with vocational skills, part of a livelihood restoration program aimed at improving their economic resilience. The initiative provides training to help those displaced by the pipeline find self-employment or secure paid jobs.
A total of 456 students, including 217 females, from Gomba, Kyotera, Lwengo, Rakai, and Sembabule districts, completed three months of vocational training and a one-month internship. The students attended Mummy’s Institute of Beauty and Commercial Studies, St. Charles Lwanga Technical Institute Butende, and Masaka Vocational Training Institute. This latest group brings the total number of youth trained along the entire pipeline route to 1,476.
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Rosie Birungi, EACOP’s social performance manager, said the company is “greatly honored” to empower youth with skills that will help them start their own enterprises and improve household incomes.
The students received training in various fields, including motor vehicle and motorcycle mechanics, welding, metal fabrication, electrical installation, hairdressing, plumbing, carpentry, cosmetology, and building and construction. They will also receive starter kits to help them begin their careers. The support, facilitated through EACOP contractor ASIGMA Ltd., covered tuition, scholastic materials, and welfare.
According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics’ National Labour Force Survey 2021, the country’s youth unemployment rate is 17%, significantly higher than the national average of 11.7%.
The livelihood restoration program is a core component of EACOP’s commitment to empowering affected households. It includes agricultural improvement programs and enterprise development in addition to vocational training. The program aims to restore and improve the livelihoods of affected persons by using available household resources post-resettlement.
About the Livelihood Restoration Program
The program is implemented in two phases. Phase 1 provides transitional support, such as food baskets, to households within the first six to 12 months after they vacate their land. So far, 1,949 of 2,257 eligible households have received this support.
Phase 2 and 3 involve long-term support, including agricultural improvement and enterprise development. To date, 2,938 of 3,400 eligible households are receiving agricultural support, which includes hands-on training and starter packs with improved seeds and other technologies.
