Our Programs: Fusing Policy and Prosperity

The Step Up Youth Initiative delivers impact through a powerful integrated model. Our programs are strategically designed to create a feedback loop between grassroots economic empowerment and high-level policy advocacy. We don’t just solve problems; we change the system, ensuring that the voices and economic needs of young Ugandans directly inform and transform national development.

Our initiatives fall into three Key areas

1. Civic Responsibility (Bulungibwansi)

Voluntary Local Review (VLR)

The VLR program is the critical engine of our national accountability work. We transform the lived experiences of young people into robust, evidence-based data, which we then present to local and national governments. By organizing youth-led reviews of local development plans, we ensure that the progress of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is measured not by bureaucratic metrics, but by the reality on the ground. This program is the bridge between our community work and the Office of the Prime Minister’s SDGs Secretariat, forcing policy dialogue and ensuring youth voices drive state-level planning.

African Youth SDGs Summit

As a premier continental platform, the African Youth SDGs Summit is where the next generation of African leaders convene to accelerate the 2030 Agenda. This program is dedicated to bridging the gap between young innovators and high-level decision-makers, creating a space for authentic dialogue on peace, digital transformation, and sustainable development. The Summit elevates youth solutions beyond national borders, serving as a dynamic, high-stakes platform for pan-African policy influence and peer-to-peer knowledge exchange.

2. Economic Resilience (Okweyimirizaawo)

The women in Agribusiness Investment Summit & Expo

We believe that while training builds capacity, market access builds wealth. In partnership with UN Women, this initiative serves as a strategic bridge to Economic Resilience ( $Okweyimirizaawo$ ). It addresses a critical gap: connecting rural women farmers directly to private investors, high-level policymakers, and export value chains. By dismantling structural barriers to finance and markets, we transform women from mere cultivators into investable producers and industry leaders. This platform ensures that the fruits of their hard work translate into tangible, scalable economic power.

Komuka Skills Hub

The Komuka Skills Hub is our innovative vocational and production center based in the city. It is a vibrant ecosystem dedicated to practical, market-ready skills training, focusing on fields like leatherwork, tailoring, and advanced digital skills. This program operates as a social enterprise: youth train by producing high-quality goods that are sold commercially. This approach ensures two critical outcomes: participants graduate with both technical skills and entrepreneurial income, moving directly toward Economic Resilience and away from economic vulnerability.

Obuntu Model Community Farm

Located in rural Mbale, the Obuntu Model Community Farm is the physical embodiment of climate-smart resilience. The farm operates as a training ground and a business, focused on teaching women and youth climate-resilient agriculture (e.g., modern poultry, horticulture). The farm’s production is sold commercially to generate internal revenue, creating a sustainable model that funds community training while providing nutritional and economic stability. This program is crucial for securing the Economic Sovereignty of women agri-preneurs who are on the frontlines of the climate crisis.

3. The Knowledge Hub

The Obuntu Knowledge Hub

The Knowledge Hub is the heartbeat and resource centre of the Step Up Youth Initiative. It is the centralized platform for all our institutional memory, research, policy briefs, and success stories. The Hub serves two primary functions: internally, it ensures data from the VLRs informs program design at the Komuka Hub and Obuntu Farm; externally, it provides partners, researchers, and government officials with transparent, evidence-based materials on youth development. It ensures our actions are always guided by data and that our impact is always measurable.

Within this Hub, we house a critical pillar of our social cohesion work:

Interfaith Dialogue & Peacebuilding: Recognizing that sustainable development cannot take root in conflict, we facilitate interfaith dialogues that bring diverse religious youth together. Grounded in the shared values of Civic Responsibility and Integrity, we use these platforms to dismantle prejudice, foster tolerance, and build a unified moral voice for justice. By connecting faith with action, we ensure that our economic and policy work is supported by a peaceful, cohesive community fabric.

You're welcome. Let's Start a Conversation

Whether you are a potential partner, a young person looking for opportunity, or a supporter who believes in our mission, we want to hear from you. We are accessible, transparent, and ready to engage.

Address

Obuntu Knowledge Hub, Busamira Upper Cell, Namagumba Ward, Northern Division, Mbale, Uganda

Email: info@stepupyouthafrica.org