Nakaseke District, Uganda - June 18, 2024: Yesterday, the Rose Namayanja Foundation proudly celebrated the graduation of 120 students who excelled in various vocational disciplines. These graduates received certificates from the Directorate of Industrial Training (DIT) in fields such as mechanical engineering, tailoring, carpentry, catering, hairdressing, and bricklaying, among others.
State Minister for Higher Education, Dr. John Chrysestom Muyingo, attended the event as the chief guest and expressed gratitude to the graduates for their dedication and success in the DIT program.
"I want to thank the graduates for completing this stage of the DIT exercise. What you have gotten today is very precious," stated Dr. Muyingo. "The government of Uganda has put in place measures to equip Ugandans in poverty with skills to enable them to join the money economy. The education system has also been modified to prioritize skills acquisition. The focus is to enable Ugandans to get skills to create or get jobs. At whichever level you are, you can and should join the Skilling Uganda program to equip yourself with the skills to be a job creator or to acquire a job because of your skills. The government is going to spend a lot of money to skill the population."
He also highlighted the government's "Skilling Uganda" initiative, designed to prepare Ugandans to compete for local and international jobs.
Rt Hon Namayanja Rose Nsereko, founder and director of the Rose Namayanja Foundation, emphasized the importance and recognition of DIT certificates in the Ugandan education system and labour market. "The DIT program, provisioned under the Business, Technical, Vocational Education and Training Act, states that the certificates and diplomas awarded by DIT shall be recognized in the Uganda education system and the labour market. This means that skilful artisans who didn't go through formal school are examined by the DIT and awarded certificates upon excelling in the examinations. The certificate that you are receiving here is a true symbol that you are a professional in a certain field," she said.
Namayanja urged the graduates to exercise professionalism in their work to maintain and attract new clients. "You need to build a strong reputation and work hard toward maintaining and improving it," she advised.
Namayanja also spoke about the foundation’s "Pass PLE" academic improvement program, which provides newspapers with PLE pullouts for student revision, and the PLE academic trophy awarded to the best school in the Nakaseke district. "We do this because we want our children to grade themselves just like other pupils from those renowned schools. Still, in education, we encourage students that it’s possible to achieve it all irrespective of where you come from. We narrate our life journey to portray to them that it’s all possible. You cannot succeed in life if you don't have discipline," she added.
Severino Akiba Bataringaya, Principal Qualification Officer in charge of assessment and certification from DIT, urged the graduates to maintain discipline, integrity, and dedication in their professional lives. "Whenever you are working, always learn to keep time and always have it at the back of your minds that a customer is a king," Bataringaya said, emphasizing that technical vocational education is the future. "You have to be smart people both mentally at work and wherever you will be."
The ceremony marked a significant milestone for the Rose Namayanja Foundation and the broader community, reinforcing the value of vocational education in empowering individuals and fostering economic growth.
