Samuel Begira

I took no offense Comrade, and in fact, your question provided a valuable learning opportunity for all of us, especially the young leaders who were present. Actually, such a relationship between political handouts, recipient behaviour and the culture of dependency is a subject I am personally willing to understand deeply. Thanks for bringing it out.

I see you’re adding a pinch of satire 😂 Cde. @Mwijukyeivan’s observation cannot be entirely dismissed because POLITICAL HANDOUTS condition young people into a culture of dependency, which is certainly not the culture we should be nurturing in our generation. I strongly disagree with his suggestion that @GovUganda’s intention in introducing poverty eradication programs like PDM, is to discourage the young people from working towards an independent financial future. That is simply NOT CORRECT. These programmes exist to provide VULNERABLE Ugandans, including young people, with a starting point to transition into the money economy, build sustainable livelihoods and eradicate poverty in their households. And I encourage us all to support these programs, and use them productively.

We remain convinced that getting more young people INTO the money economy is central to sustainable poverty eradication, but our transformation agenda must begin with empowering young people to create wealth, for themselves - first, their households and communities.

Our conversations reflected a generation ambitious to contribute through entrepreneurship, but equally conscious of the barriers that remain. We all agree that access to practical skills and affordable capital must therefore be prioritised.