AFFORESTATION A PARTIAL ALTERNATIVE SOLUTION TO YOUTH   UNEMPLOYMENT IN UGANDA

Today, the unemployment rate in Uganda stands at approximately 83% of the total population thus threatening the economy and future of the country. This literally means the biggest population of the youth be it educated or not, lives below the poverty line, Uganda having the youngest population across Africa! This is a very big question to the leadership of Uganda and, all manner of mechanics has to be employed to address this menace.

All is not gone however! Many youth happen to have access to or are even custodians of large chunks of customary land back home in the villages. If this was put to productivity say in Agriculture, it would not only increase the incomes of the youth but also have a ripple effect to the gross domestic product of Uganda.

Today, climate change possess a very big threat to life across the globe to the effect that it has become a global concern to the state powers, companies, civil society, mention. This is so evident in the number of protocols and agreements that have been signed, case in point; the Kyoto Protocol of 1997, the United Nations FrameWork Convention on Climate Change, UNFCCC, and the just recent Paris Agreemement; all these seeking lasting or alternative remedies to this fatal effect. The Paris Agreement in particular envisages a situation where the global rises in temperature does not exceed 1.5ͦ C and thus a series of mechanisms we laid out to realize the same.

In Europe, some companies that are involved in emission of hazardous gases have resorted to buying oxygen by contributing standard fees as compensation and at the same time motivation to individuals or Institutions that have committed themselves to afforestation. This has thus been received by firms/foresters in terms of Carbon Units produced for carbon sequestration.

Way Forward

A campaign of Carbon points for carbon sequestration is one of an urgent call in Africa and Uganda in particular. If promoted, afforestation  would not only mitigate climate change but also sustainably increase incomes of the many unemployed youths hanging in urban centres, reduce crime and congestion in city suburbs whereas at the same time increase Uganda’s productivity and hence GDP as a whole!...This is what they call hitting two birds with one stone!