22-year-old Sharon Kahunde works as a records and information assistant at Bunyangabu Beekeepers Cooperative Society (BBC), where she has been employed since September 2024. Sharon comes from Fort Portal and holds a Certificate in Records and Information Management from Rosa Mystica Institute, where she studied for two years. She completed her exams in May 2024 and, like many fresh graduates, spent the next few months at home wondering what to do next.

Her turning point came when she received a phone call from Enabel. The team was reaching out to fresh graduates through their former institutions, offering them a chance to join the Work Readiness Programme under the WeWork–green and decent jobs for youth project. Sharon felt fortunate. “I felt lucky that I was just called and didn’t have to look for a job myself,” she says. She filled in the application form they sent her and was later invited for a three-day training at Kyema Technical College in the Albertine region.

The training focused on workplace behaviour, communication, and practical computer skills, which she remembers vividly because they were hands-on, and she was tested on what she learned. Two weeks after the training, Sharon and the other trainees were placed in different organisations. Four graduates were posted to BBC, but only two were retained—and Sharon was one of them. She believes her commitment and discipline helped her stand out. “I used to come to work every day and work diligently,” she recalls.

Although excited, Sharon was initially worried about moving from Fort Portal to Bunyangabu because she had never lived away from home and did not know where she would stay. When she met the BBC manager and shared her concerns, he reassured her and gave her a tour of the premises. To her surprise, BBC had accommodation available, and she was offered a two-bedroom house within the premises at no cost. She only buys her own food and does not incur any rent or transport expenses, something she describes as a blessing.

At BBC, Sharon works from Monday to Saturday managing the stores for honey and packaging materials. She records all honey received from production, issues stock to the packing room, and keeps track of everything brought to the premises, including wax and propolis. At the end of each month, she prepares a report showing what was received and what remains. She still records everything in books but also uses a laptop that BBC gave her when she was retained. She says this is part of the digitalisation process supported by Enabel under the WeWork project. She also handles ordering and verifying packaging materials and records them before issuing them out to staff.

Sharon believes she was recommended for the programme because she was the best student in her Records and Information class. Only four students studied that course, and she emerged top, even receiving a prize for academic excellence. She also believes her good discipline made her teachers confident enough to put her forward. Her dedication continues to open doors. When TONADO, one of Enabel’s implementing partners that trains youth and women in beekeeping, set up an office at BBC and needed a bookkeeper, they hired Sharon and offered her a two-year contract starting December 2024.

Outside work, Sharon is also a growing entrepreneur. She runs a boutique in Fort Portal city, selling clothes and shoes, and employs her cousin to manage it, along with her mobile money business—which she started while still in school and continues to operate. She also keeps pigs at her parents’ home, where she has three pigs and six piglets. The income from these businesses helps her cover costs and support her family.

She saves money every month, preparing for life after her contract and looking forward to becoming self-employed one day. Sharon says her drive comes from her upbringing. Raised by a single mother in a humble home, she learned early the importance of working hard. She supports her siblings and pays school fees for her sister in Senior Two. “I don’t want to die poor,” she says. “I grew up in poverty and experienced it, and I don’t want that life.”