Pius Busingye was once on a clear path to becoming a medical doctor. But in 2015, just weeks before sitting his final Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) exams, life took a sharp, unexpected turn. A sudden illness took away his hearing, and with it, the smooth trajectory he had envisioned for his future.

“I got Division 1 with an aggregate of 23,” Pius happily recalls. “But I know I could have done even better if I had not fallen sick just before the exams.” His dream of studying medicine felt suddenly out of reach because it became challenging for him to navigate such a sudden change without adequate resources and sufficient sign language skills.

Adapting to hearing loss was not an easy task. Everyday conversations became puzzles he had to solve by reading lips or scribbling back and forth. Despite his strong academic performance, the lack of access to a special needs school forced 17-year-old Pius to drop out of school. His parents, though supportive, simply could not afford the additional costs.

With dreams deferred but not forgotten, Pius turned to the informal sector to survive. He first worked as a chainsaw maintainer, then moved into masonry. After nearly two years of backbreaking work, the contractor he was working with vanished without paying him. The money, Pius had hoped, would help him return to school.

It was at this point that Pius got to know about the tourism and hospitality apprenticeship programme through a friend. “He told me about the apprenticeship programme by Enabel and the Uganda Hotel Owners Association (UHOA). As soon as I saw the advert, I applied and was glad to be selected for interviews,” said Pius. 

Alongside other youth, Pius went through three months of training at the Uganda Hotel and Tourism Training Institute in Jinja. He specialised in food production and presentation, and after 3 months of training, he was placed in the bustling kitchen of Serena Hotel in Kigo, Entebbe, to practise the skills he acquired from the training institute. “I was able to make different dishes, manage client stations, and communicate with the waiting team,” he shared proudly. Working in food production didn’t just teach him practical skills but also reignited his confidence.

Today, Pius views cooking as more than just a job. “I consider cooking an art. Every day I push myself to learn something new, especially with the help of the chief chef and my colleagues.” He passed the Directorate of Industrial Training (DIT) assessment to earn his certificate to fully practise his cooking and food presentation skills.

Pius dreams of blending his culinary skills with another hidden passion: tailoring. “I will cook on my duty days, and on my off days, I will sew clothes,” he said. This is his way of creating a balanced, sustainable life, one that allows him to support his siblings and, someday, his own family. 

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