Uganda is one of the countries with very high unemployment Rate in the world. In 2016, unemployment increased to 2.28 percent from 2.15 percent in 2015. According to statistics, an increase in population, has also come with increase in unemployment.
Unemployment in Uganda averaged 2.41 percent from 1991 until 2016, reaching an all-time high of 3.50 percent in 2002.
In Uganda, the unemployment rate measures the number of people actively looking for a job as a percentage of the labour force. By 2012, 64% of Ugandan youth were unemployed.
Causes of youth unemployment are believed to be ranging from an inadequate investment/supply side of jobs, insufficient employable skills (i.e., youth possess skills that are not compatible with available jobs) and high rates of labor force growth at 4.7 percent per annum.
It is because of such, that Sauman Services Limited, a leading labour exporting company in Uganda, is helping youths to secure jobs in Jordan, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia among other countries.
Ian Kaijuka, the company’s Managing Director tells Howwe.Biz, that at least 30 ladies were through the company employed in Jordan last year. In January this year, at least 8 ladies.
This weekend, Sauman will see off 9 other ladies to the two countries. This is one of the ways to deal away with unemployment in the country.
Recently, Uganda’s ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development lifted a 2-year ban that had been imposed on external recruitment agencies on exporting domestic workers to Saudi Arabia. Sauman services Limited, is one of the countries that had been affected by this ban for some months. Ladies had been trained and cleared to leave, but the ministry would not sign off due to some concerns brought up by ladies that had previously worked in Saudi. This was later sorted by the two governments.
Mr. Kaijuka narrated to us this morning, that the ladies placed by Sauman are cleaners and house maids. They earn between 1to 2 Million Uganda Shillings. This amount is way above the pay grade her in Uganda, where house keepers are paid as little as 30,000 Shillings.
Ladies who are leaving on Saturday have been trained in a series of disciplines including financial management, how to handle children and the elderly, phone etiquette among others.
According to the new bilateral agreement signed by the government of Uganda and the employing countries, ladies are not supposed to pay any fee, as was in the past. One just needs a passport, while the other fees including Visa and tickets.
This makes it easier for Ugandan youth to acquire jobs easily. However, things have been improved to help especially housemaids with job security.
A system known as Musaned was developed by governments, this is what companies use to upload profiles of all employees after application. An employer then visits a given placement company and is allowed access to profiles, so they can choose a person with given qualifications.
This means authorities have information about this employer, should anything happen to the selected candidate while under their care.