By Shamim Saad
Luzira single mothers have been offered agribusiness training and boosted with 2,000 mushroom gardens by Uganda Breweries Limited (UBL).
According to the Corporate Relations Director at UBL, Juliana Kagwa, the move is aimed at tackling the burden of growing income gaps faced by many women living in urban settings due to the multiple forms of barriers women face in their everyday lives, which have put them at a greater risk of poverty and limited negotiating power to access resources.
“We recognize that inequitable access to skills and resources is some of the key reasons why having equal opportunities for women is seemingly difficult. This means that equitable actions need to be put in place to empower women, and one of the ways is through acquiring skills,” she said during an event held at Luzira recently.
Kagwa further added that “As players in the private sector, we pledge to continue working together with the local leadership to empower the women of Luzira and beyond so that we eliminate poverty and achieve gender equality for all women,”
She noted that they believe that the most inclusive and diverse culture makes a better business and a better world, and this can be done by championing inclusion and diversity within our business, with our partners, and in the communities around our areas of operation.
“We pledge to continue providing avenues where there’s equal opportunity for those in our communities to grow as we grow.” Kagwa alluded
A study from the World Bank indicates that females account for 76% of Uganda’s workforce in the agricultural sector and contribute about 60% to 80% to the production of locally consumed food.
With Uganda’s population standing at 45 million people at the current growth rate of 3.6%, the population is expected to double by 2050.
This means, that the demand for food will keep increasing, and so there’s a need to empower women with the right skills they need so that they can produce food for their families as well as generate income.
The Luzira Women Councilor LC III Fatumah Naigaga commended UBL for the huge role they are playing in empowering women around the communities of their operation.
“Many women living in urban slums, in particular, endure multiple hardships ranging from basic needs such as; unemployment, nutrition, durable housing, limited access to clean water, and improved sanitation facilities which often go unmet,” She explained
Naigaga said the above challenges have constrained women’s participation in all spheres of life with serious implications for human resource development and, in that capacity, the economic development of the country and the general state of gender equality is still a great need,” said Naigaga.
Uganda Breweries Society’s 2030 sustainability action plan aims at a sustainable and inclusive world by 2030 for all to create a purpose-driven business that succeeds in the long term.
Their commitment to inclusion and diversity is to ensure 50% of beneficiaries from the brewery’s community programs are women and that these community programs are designed to empower underrepresented groups in various communities.
