President Yoweri Museveni has directed the Ministry of Education and Sports to begin phasing out what he described as “irrelevant” academic programmes in universities and other higher institutions of learning.
The president said many courses being offered today do not match the needs of Uganda’s job market and are contributing to the growing problem of unemployment among young graduates.
Speaking during the Labour Day celebrations held in Buikwe District on May 1, President Museveni expressed concern about the increasing number of graduates leaving universities with qualifications that do not easily lead to employment opportunities.
According to him, the country must focus more on practical and productive skills that directly support economic growth and job creation.
Museveni said Uganda’s education system should produce graduates whose knowledge and skills can solve problems in the economy instead of producing large numbers of job seekers without clear opportunities.
He argued that some academic programmes may provide knowledge and information but fail to prepare students for the realities of the labour market.
“Now the other issue is the courses which don’t have relevance in the job market,” the president said during his speech. He explained that while some courses may teach important theories or global history, they may not necessarily help Uganda solve its immediate economic challenges.
To explain his point further, Museveni used an example comparing the education system to a market situation. He said if the market demands tomatoes but someone brings yams instead, the yams may still be valuable but they are not what is currently needed. According to him, universities should focus on producing graduates in fields where there is high demand.
The president revealed that he recently met several young graduates with degrees in Social Work and Social Administration, procurement, and psychology. He questioned how such qualifications could easily translate into available employment opportunities in Uganda’s current economy.
Museveni particularly spoke about a graduate with a psychology degree who told him that psychology could help understand human thinking and behavior. The president reportedly asked how many jobs actually exist in Uganda for such skills. According to Museveni, the graduate struggled to explain where large-scale employment opportunities in that field could come from.
The president said he was more encouraged by young people who pursued practical courses such as catering and hospitality because many of them reportedly found jobs quickly after completing their studies. He stressed that young people should carefully think about the employability of the courses they choose before joining university.
Museveni also explained that his concerns about university courses are not new. He said he had previously warned education officials and former ministers about the dangers of expanding university enrollment without properly considering whether the economy could absorb the growing number of graduates.
He recalled discussions with former education ministers such as Geraldine Namirembe Bitamazire and Amanya Mushega during a period when thousands of students qualified for university admission but government sponsorship opportunities remained limited.
According to Museveni, at one point more than 11,000 students qualified to join university while government sponsorship could only support about 1,000 students. This led to the decision to allow both privately sponsored and government-sponsored students to join universities in order to widen access to higher education.
Although this increased university enrollment, the president argued that many institutions later introduced courses without enough guidance about their relevance to the labour market. He said this created a situation where many graduates completed degrees that offered limited employment opportunities.
Museveni revealed that he had instructed the Ministry of Education and Sports in the past to provide proper guidelines on course selection and academic programmes. However, he said the directives were not properly followed, leading to continued growth of programmes he considers less useful to the economy.
The president has now promised to follow up on the matter more seriously to ensure reforms are implemented. According to him, the government wants universities and training institutions to align their programmes with the country’s economic priorities and labour demands.
The expected reforms could significantly affect arts and humanities-related programmes, especially those viewed as producing graduates in fields with limited direct employment opportunities. However, the debate is likely to generate strong reactions from education experts, lecturers, students, and professionals who believe such courses still play an important role in society.
Museveni also advised graduates who already hold degrees in less marketable fields to consider acquiring additional practical skills or professional training that can help them create jobs or become self-employed. He encouraged young people to focus on skills that support entrepreneurship and productivity.
The president linked Uganda’s unemployment challenges partly to mindset and attitudes toward work. He argued that many opportunities still exist in sectors such as agriculture, but many young people are not taking full advantage of them.
While traveling to Buikwe for the Labour Day celebrations, Museveni said he noticed that large areas of land remained underutilized despite Uganda having fertile soil and good weather conditions suitable for agriculture. He encouraged citizens to engage in serious commercial farming instead of waiting only for office jobs.
He pointed to countries such as Japan as examples of nations that successfully created employment opportunities despite having limited natural resources. According to him, countries can create jobs through industrialization, discipline, and productivity rather than depending entirely on natural wealth.
The president further argued that Uganda possesses enormous agricultural potential that could create millions of jobs if fully utilized. He said that with proper use of the country’s arable land, commercial agriculture alone could provide employment opportunities for millions of people and greatly reduce youth unemployment across the country.
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