Mastercard Foundation, in collaboration with the National Social Security Fund (NSSF) in Uganda, has kicked off the second phase of their Hi-Innovator programme for entrepreneurs in the country.

The two-phase programme, according to the development partners, aims to create over 132,000 new job opportunities for youths and women in Uganda for the next five years.

The first phase of the programme, launched in May 2021, consisted of self-directed online learning via a platform providing foundational business knowledge to entrepreneurs to enable them to address gaps in their businesses.

Despite Uganda’s unemployment rate dropping from 11.1 percent to 9.2 percent in 2016–2017, there has been less progress for the country’s young population in terms of gaining employment.

For the next six months, the Hi-Innovator programme, the development partners said, will support successful applicants with grants, technical assistance, business and market development to enable them to scale their businesses.

Speaking at the programme launch, the Lead for Micro, Small, and Medium-Sized Enterprise, Mastercard Foundation Uganda, Arnold Byamgaba, said the foundation’s vision is to support highly impactful and scalable small and growing businesses while creating an efficient business ecosystem.

‘Congratulations to the entrepreneurs who presented their projects today. We congratulate you on your progress thus far and we are humbled to be part of your journey’, Byamgaba said.

‘For those who were unsuccessful, we encourage you to persevere and to use the lessons you have learnt to date to advance your business ideas’.

For his part, the NSSF Deputy Managing Director, Patrick Ayota, said the programme was aimed at creating an ecosystem where the innovation of small and growing businesses can be harnessed.

This, according to him, will help provide a pathway to creating job opportunities for women and youths in the country.

‘We also specifically targeted businesses in the agricultural value chain, such as agro-processing, agro-industry, and service support’, Ayota said.

‘We specifically chose agriculture because the sector employs about 73 percent of the population and has the potential to create significantly more work opportunities for youths and women’.

Source: Mastercard Foundation

Photo source: Trust for Africas Orphans