Skilling Uganda
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Ouganda
While the smell of freshly baked
vanilla cookies rises from the oven, Ezra Balugu explains the bakery students at the Margherita Training Institute
in Kasese how to obtain that perfect cookie crunch. Ezra completed a 2-month bakery
training through the Skills Development Fund (SDF) of BTC’s Support to Skilling
Uganda project. “I learned so much and
want to transfer my skills to other young people of my community.”
Coming from a family of 13 children,
Erza started baking chapatti by the side of the road to raise
money for school fees. When he learned about the bakery training at the Margherita
Training Institute he immediately applied. “I
learned how to bake wedding cakes, cinnamon buns, pizzas and much more!” After completing his training, the institute
asked him to help out during classes as an assistant-trainer.
Classes are given by Joshua Manday,
an experienced chef who worked in renowned kitchens all over Uganda. “When I moved back to Kasese, the Margherita Training
Institute asked me to work as a part-time trainer. I like it because it allows
me to pass on my knowledge.” Thanks to the Skills Development Fund the Margherita
Training institute was able to hire Joshua part-time, hereby guaranteeing a
constant flow of hands-on expertise to the trainees.
But there’s more: in order to
graduate, each trainee needs to complete a one-month internship at a hotel. This work-based learning is also facilitated by the SDF. Ezra adds “I did my internship at the Sandton Hotel in
Kasese, where I baked cookies, bread and samosas. Now I know what it’s like
working in a hotel kitchen.” Additionally, trainees receive entrepreneurship
trainings during which they learn to set up a business plan and keep financial records.
20 year-old Hanisha Kezabu finished her training and has plans for the future: “I want to start a small pizza restaurant
with pizza delivery, preferably together with some of my fellow graduates.”
Kisole Nason, director of the Margherita
Training Institute, adds that the SDF improved the Institute’s infrastructure: “It came like a blessing. Before we used to
mix dough with our hands because we did not have mixers. We dug holes in the
ground to keep water fresh but now we have a freezer and fridge. We could not
even teach baking because we did not have an oven. But that is all resolved.“ Because
the quality of trainings has improved, graduates are now in high demand on the
labor market. If that isn’t the icing on the cake…
The Skills Development Fund in
Albertine-Rwenzori aims at sustainably improving the quality of technical and
vocational trainings through public-private partnerships, in order to enhance the youth’s employability.
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