Senior executives from Uganda’s leading organizations convened at Golden Tulip Hotel on Thursday for BrighterMonday Uganda’s Executive Roundtable on Strategic Workforce Shaping.
Held in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, FUE, and HRMAU, the forum focused on redefining workforce strategies by leveraging Uganda’s youthful population as a key driver of future business growth.
Unlike traditional discussions on recruitment, the Roundtable emphasized transforming young talent into long-term leadership pipelines, highlighting how early career development and strategic mentorship can shape organizational resilience and competitiveness.
Uganda’s workforce is overwhelmingly young, with over 70% of the population under the age of 30. Xenia Wachira, Country Manager at BrighterMonday Uganda, framed this demographic reality as both an opportunity and a challenge.
“Uganda’s youth could be our greatest asset—or our biggest risk—if not strategically nurtured,” Wachira said.
“Today, we explored ways to create career pathways that turn young talent into the leaders of tomorrow.”
Executives shared experiences and strategies to bridge the gap between youthful potential and workplace readiness.
Evelyn Zalwango of AmCham Uganda stressed that youth unemployment is not just about jobs—it’s about preparation and exposure.
“We need to equip young people with the skills, mentorship, and real-world experience to contribute meaningfully from day one,” she said.
The Roundtable highlighted the need for data-driven workforce planning, moving away from reactive hiring toward anticipating skill needs.
Panelists, including Joanita Mukasa Menya (VIVO Energy), Henry Tumusiime (ABSA Bank), and Susan Mataka (Kakira Sugar Limited), shared approaches to identifying skill adjacencies, building internal talent marketplaces, and creating structured career pathways that integrate knowledge transfer and succession planning.
“Early career recruitment is not just filling vacancies; it’s about future-proofing organizations by nurturing talent that can lead the company decades from now,” said moderator Natasha Katondwaki.
Pamela Kabahesi, Gen-Kazi Project Lead, reminded participants that Uganda’s youth could either drive national economic growth or exacerbate challenges if not strategically engaged.
“The decisions we make today about how we recruit, train, and mentor young people will determine whether this generation becomes productive contributors or a lost opportunity,” Kabahesi said.
The Roundtable concluded with the development of a strategic roadmap that emphasizes cross-functional collaboration between HR, Finance, and Operations departments. Leaders committed to embedding workforce shaping into core business strategy rather than leaving it as an HR function alone.
BrighterMonday Uganda, FUE, and HRMAU plan to translate insights from the Roundtable into white papers, industry benchmarks, and executive toolkits, helping organizations create actionable plans to develop youth talent into tomorrow’s business leaders.
The event showcased a shared vision: Uganda’s youth are not just future employees—they are the strategic backbone of national economic growth, and equipping them today is essential to sustaining businesses and the broader economy tomorrow.
