The Knowledge Engine, Vol 4 · 4 December 2025 · Written by Robert M.J. Kintu, Idea Motivator and CEO, FIT Insights

A personal motivation to write

This week I was challenged during a meeting organised by Mark Karamira of BNI Integrity, who brought together young, self-made businesspeople and private-sector trainers with the Chair of the TVET Council, Ms Allen Kagina, and her team led by the Executive Director, Mr Moses Kasakya. A question was put to me as a Data Scientist and Data-Driven Business Intelligence Strategist:

Can we have a snapshot of the future employable skills? We are training learners blindly. Are we giving the industries what they need?

That question is a mirror held up to a national crisis: Uganda produces graduates every year, but we are not producing employable people. This article is a quick, directional response intended to provoke a serious national conversation.

Our statistics paint a clear picture

• Youth unemployment is estimated at over 13%, but youth underemployment exceeds 41%.
• Over 1 million young people join the labour market each year, yet the formal economy absorbs less than 20% of them.
• Nearly 65% of employed youths work in vulnerable, informal or low-skilled jobs with little growth potential.
• Industries report a skills mismatch of over 45% — almost half of graduates do not fit available job requirements.

The market outlook, 2026–2036

Uganda’s economy is reshaping itself. The services sector now leads national growth at over 42% of GDP, driven by telecommunications, mobile money, internet expansion, trade, transport, tourism and digitisation. Manufacturing has risen from 8% to nearly 16% of GDP, with food processing, textiles, cement, steel and construction materials expanding through import substitution and domestic demand.

Agriculture still contributes about 24% of GDP but is stagnating through low mechanisation, limited irrigation and climate vulnerability. The transition is uneven: employment remains concentrated in low-productivity rural activities while new jobs rise in urban services and industry. The future will demand more technical, digital, industrial and service-oriented skills.

Sector scorecard: top sectors for employment

1. Digital and ICT (fastest growing): data analysts and scientists, ICT technicians, cyber-security officers, software developers, digital marketers, BPO agents.
2. Manufacturing and industrial processing: machine operators, process technicians, quality-assurance officers, industrial electricians, welders and fabricators.
3. Construction and infrastructure: construction supervisors, plumbers, electricians, quantity-survey technicians, heavy-equipment operators.
4. Energy (oil, gas and renewables): mechanical and electrical technicians, pipeline technicians, safety and environment officers, solar installers.
5. Agribusiness and value addition: extension specialists, food-processing and irrigation technicians, post-harvest and agri-logistics officers.
6. Transport, logistics and e-mobility: logistics coordinators, vehicle and EV technicians, cold-chain operators, freight and customs agents.

Watch the space: ten declining jobs

These jobs will not vanish, but they will shrink as automation, AI and digitalisation replace routine tasks: traditional secretaries and typists; bank tellers and cashiers; library assistants; traditional security guards; unskilled farm labourers; postal workers; traditional shopkeepers; airtime vendors; print-production staff; and petrol/diesel-only mechanics.

Advisory corner: ten recommendations for BTVET

1. Adopt competency-based short courses (3–6 months) for fast-moving job families.
2. Integrate digital literacy into every programme as a minimum standard.
3. Strengthen industry partnerships for internships and industrial training.
4. Reform curricula to prioritise manufacturing, ICT, energy and logistics.
5. Establish regional national skills laboratories for high-tech training.
6. Introduce accredited certification for oil and gas, solar installation and automation.
7. Digitise BTVET institutions: smart classrooms, e-learning and online certification.
8. Give youth incentives to join technical careers through scholarships and subsidies.
9. Establish a real-time labour-market data system for continuous monitoring.
10. Re-skill lecturers to match emerging technologies and industry standards.