Uganda sends envoy to learn about Ghana’s National Service Scheme

A delegation from Uganda has arrived in Ghana to learn about Ghana’s National Service Scheme.

The seven-member delegation is from Uganda's Parliament and the team being led by Waira Kyewalabye Majegere has already met the newly executive director of the National Service Scheme, Ussif Mustapha.

Nationals service is mandatory for all tertiary school graduates in Ghana and service deployment typically lasts for a year, although there has been a recent introduction of extensions for those who would like to do so.

According to Ussif Mustapha, there was a need for African countries to learn from the success and challenges of each other and also the importance of deploying the skills and energies of its young people for the good of the continent.

He also mentioned that the scheme would deploy over 100,000 service personnel this year with a special focus on the technology and agriculture sectors in line with the country’s vision to improve its current standing in these fields.

The head of the East African delegation, Waira Kyewalabye Majegere, “anytime employers advertise job opportunities, they look for five years working experience from the youth but most of them fall short of this requirement. With a robust national scheme that will serve as a link between the knowledge students gain from the universities and the requirement by industry, we may be on the path to solving the unemployment challenge.”