By Isaac Akugizibwe
NATIONAL
Career guidance and mentorship experts are considering coming together in a bid to influence government policy towards adopting career mentorship programs in schools and higher institutions of learning. The experts had gathered at Serena hotel in Kampala during a career guidance and mentorship Stakeholders breakfast meeting on Saturday 15th April 11, 2023.
This was the first ever Career Guidance and Mentorship stakeholder’s breakfast meeting and was organised by Shine Leadership international in conjunction with African Center for Career Mentorship and The Student Hub Uganda.
Because they have discovered a deficiency of career guidance and mentorship in the Country, experts at both Shine Leadership International, African Center for Career Mentorship and the Student Hub expressed the need to create an Association of Career mentors in Uganda so as to have one common voice
According to Anita Malinga, a Co-founder at Shine Leadership International, the idea of having an umbrella that brings career mentors together would help them in many ways especially when it comes to influencing government policies.
‘’Once we come up with the Uganda Career Mentors Association to bring mentors together, we can be able to influence policy, we can be ale to introduce standardized services in schools and also offer career guidance services to both students and parents,’’ she said.
‘’We shall also be able to address the problem of youth unemployment, ’she added.
Saturday’s event was graced by highly experienced educationists and career guidance experts who in their keynote speeches unanimously agreed that career guidance can single handedly end the problem of youth unemployment.
Ambrose Kibuuka a career guidance guru and author of the famous book, ‘’After University What Next’? addressed the question, ‘’Why career guidance and mentorship is critical for every student in today’s competitive world in which he concluded that career guidance, once got right, is the best remedy for the overriding youth unemployment problem in Uganda.
‘’If we get career guidance right, we will realize that, first of all, much of the unemployment we have today was unnecessary,’’ he said.
‘’Career guidance is not something we need to adopt, it is a foundation. If someone has it, even if they don’t succeed in formal education, they will get life right, ’he added.
Kibuuka also added that, ‘’Young people should be helped to understand what happens around them. Career guidance should help in understanding of total reality.’’
In her presentation, Prof.Janice Busingye, an educationist and deputy vice chancellor in charge of finance and administration at KIU emphasized the need to let children discover their own abilities and interests instead of forcing them to pursue courses and careers based on popularity and parents or Guardian’s preferences.
‘’Each student is unique in their own way, understand what they want and like. Our children are not our Prototypes, they are just our DNA,’’she said.
Janice shared a story of how her father played a key role in her career path and success. She said it is her father’s career guidance that fueled her to work hard to become a successful woman she is today. She advised parents to always guide their children on what is right.
‘’I worked had for everything I have because of career guidance. It does not start from the school, it starts at home. It starts with you, it starts with me, it starts with us,’’ she said.
Abel Wilson Walekwa, the founder and CEO of African Center for Career Mentorship stressed that nearly 72 percent of people who seek Career mentorship succeed in achieving life goals. It is upon this that he urged government t to develop a policy on career guidance and a competence based training for career teachers.
