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The Policy Brief " INCLUSION OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES WITHIN ELECTORAL COLLEGES AND GENERAL ELECTIONS IN UGANDA"  highlights critical issues the are reflective of  “Voting Accessibility for People with Disabilities within Electoral Colleges and Mainstream Elections in Uganda” the paper was developed under the Elections Subgroup under the Rights and Justice Activity (RAJA) implemented by
Freedom House composed of four Civil Society Organisations
including; African Youth Development Link (AYDL), as the coordinating entity; Collaboration on International ICT Policy for East and Southern
Africa (CIPESA Uganda); Rwenzori Peace Bridge for Reconciliation (RPBR) in Kasese; and, Show Abilities Uganda (SAU)-an organization that works
for youth with disabilities. The issues in this brief were generated from the
issues emerging from a series of engagements conducted in the districts of Arua, Budaka, Abim, Mayuge, Amuria, Kabale, Kanungu, Masaka and
at the national level in Kampala; including platforms for dialogue and community fellowships with persons with disabilities and other groups of
people in 2021 and 2022.

Information and Communication Technologies have the potential to enhance citizen advocacy, participation, and engagement in electoral processes. Therein, inclusive technologies and ICT can break traditional
barriers to communication, interaction, access to information, and participation for persons with disabilities3. Despite ICT growth, the question of internet availability is less questioned than accessibility
and affordability. Worse still the issue of inclusive and accessible ICT digital services to support electoral participation for persons
with disabilities remains a concern.
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The Disability Inclusive Electoral Plan is a guiding framework for electoral actors to enhance participation for persons with disabilities (as candidates or voters) in the electoral process in Uganda. The proposal
is built from a holistic approach of ACAPP (Attitude, Communication, Accessibility, Policy, and Participation) as a means of ensuring that
no PWD is left behind at any of the stages of the electoral cycle.           

The inclusive Plan protocol guideline intends to be a guiding framework
for electoral actors to manage and organize the electoral process from a disability-inclusive approach. The Disability Inclusive Electoral Plan (DIEP) was generated after a series of continuous highlights from the disability community and the general public that indicated discontentment arising out of numerous impediments that constrained PWDs from full inclusion and participation in the past electoral processes.

African Youth Development Link (AYDL) is a dynamic nonprofit; a nonpartisan youth-led development organization established in 2008, AYDL works to provide a link between youth and governance policy processes in Uganda so that we are each part of something larger
than we are. We strive to advocate for the implementation and reform of laws and policies for increased youth participation in leadership and democratic governance processes at local and national levels for progress and change.

Since 2014, AYDL has been coordinating the Youth Coalition on Electoral Democracy in Uganda (YCED) — a coalition of youth-led civil society organizations united in the desire to create synergy in various electoral democracy efforts currently being undertaken throughout Uganda. Through its flagship program, coordinated the National Youth Manifesto (NYM) agenda 2011 –2016, 2016 –2021, and 2021-2026 that highlights key policy priorities/demands by youth to the political parties, candidates in an election, and the subsequent government and emerging as a symbolic ‘youth collective voice‘ in Uganda‘s development discourse.
Therefore, in the interest to harness youth potential, AYDL collaborated with the Youth Coalition for Electoral Democracy and set up a youth domestic election observation framework to observe the 2021 general elections. The observation focused on pre-election, Election Day, and Post-election; it aimed at monitoring and observing the electoral process to make recommendations for elections work for the people through citizens
centered credible, inclusive, free, and fair process with acceptable outcomes. Having been duly accredited by the Electoral Commission with  150 election observers

As the world celebrates World Food Day with the #Leave NO ONE behind, this comes amidst multiple global challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, conflict, climate change, rising prices, and international tensions all affecting global food security. with this insight written during the pandemic, I find it worthy to be shared again

The National Youth Manifesto (NYM) is a blueprint document that highlights key policy priorities/demands by youth to the political parties, candidates. The NYM agenda has existed since 2011 – 2016 and 2016 – 2021 and now 2021-2026 symbolizing as a ‘youth collective voice’ in Uganda’s development discourse.

The Manifesto is spearheaded by African Youth Development Link under the consortium of the Youth Coalition for Electoral democracy a network of other like-minded youth-led and youth-focused Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) united in the desire to create synergy in various electoral democracy efforts in Uganda.  since 2014,  synergized efforts to bridge existing policy gaps and future vulnerabilities, risks and assumptions by proposing actions feeding into development programs from a youth lens.  we generated key youth demands from a target total sample size of 1218 youth respondents (including 543 female, 467 male, and 102 PWDS)  from across the targeted 50 districts in the five regions of Uganda and were consulted at different levels .

Plastic waste management is increasingly becoming a global challenge that has affected social- economic and environmental realities with significant bearing on environmental sustainability in Wakiso district.  The population patterns and rapid urbanization have driven production, distribution, and consumption of PET plastic packaged products and beverages like soda and water further causing plastic pollution on land and swamps surrounding Lake Victoria.
This prompted the researcher to investigate the impact of incentivizing plastic waste management on environmental sustainability a case study of the Coca-Cola Company in Namave Wakiso district. The general objective examined the impact of incentivizing plastic waste management on environmental sustainability in the Wakiso district. The other objectives explored the practices of plastic waste management by Coca-Cola Company in Namanve Wakiso district, assess the implications of plastic waste management on environmental sustainability in the Wakiso district, and explore the possible practices of incentivizing plastic waste management by Coca-Cola Company, Wakiso district.
The study took a case study research design adopting both qualitative and quantitative approaches (mixed method) to investigate the issues that revolved around plastic waste management. The qualitative research design helped to capture qualitative data, based on qualitative aspects not quantified. The other methods were interviews, observation, questionnaires, and desk reviews as data collection methods.
The study found out that the practice of plastic management at production, distribution, and consumption level has contributed to an increase in PET plastic waste due to urbanization and population dynamics as driving factors. This has tremendously had an impact economically, socially, and environmentally
The study summary findings indicated that the practice of plastic management is not managed with a clear plan of managing the wastes and plastic distribution and consumption predisposes factors to poor plastic waste management and yet they can be targeted for incentivized plastic waste recovery
The plastic waste management practices are inclined toward commercialization practices and not focused on incentivizing approaches. This has made plastic waste management practice ineffective and no sustainable due to the limitation of the technical and financial resources.
Therefore, the research recommended that sustainable waste management practice should integrate technology, policy, administrative and legal actions to address the challenge of plastic waste management through an incentivized mechanism. The focus of the incentivized approach of legal &policy framework for enforcement, establish aa a comprehensive database from production, distribution, and consumption to support plastic waste recovery, refocus plastic waste through an incentivize recovery approach and increase awareness on waste management practices for effecting the trademark “Please recycle.

The COVID-19 pandemic has presented challenges on the food security within the context of, Availability, Affordability, Accessibility, and productivity with long term impact already taking a toll on food safety, livelihood, income, and nutrition. The long term effect of the lockdown will affect productivity and sustainability of food value chains with effects exhibited through shortage of food, unemployment of informal workers along the value chain, and loss of livelihood.
The immediate impact that is being exhibited is food availability, affordability, and accessibility stretching into broader social, economic issues within the pandemic. With less productivity, the situation is likely to be sustained during the post-COVID 19 reflecting on social and economic challenges. Government direct and indirect involvements through food relief to the most vulnerable communities, however, the support has to be extended beyond the pandemic.
Therefore, the technical policy brief/position paper is part of the paper series that analyses governance issues within the pandemic with direct relevant intervention, while contextualizes the case beyond the COVID 19 pandemic and in particular analysis on food security, availability, affordability, accessibility & productivity within the epidemic and Post COVID 19 scenario.

The COVID-19 pandemic across the globe has presented challenges on the food security within the context of, Availability, Affordability, Accessibility, and productivity with long term impact already taking on a toll on food safety, livelihood, income, and nutrition. The long term effect of the lock down will be playing factor affecting productivity and sustainability of food value chains in the long term impact. This will be evidenced through food shortage, unemployment of informal workers along the value chain, and importantly livelihood.
The immediate impact that is being exhibited is food availability, affordability, and accessibility stretching into broader social, economic issues within the pandemic with the likeliness that the situation will flood into the post-COVID 19 scenario. In Uganda, as the pandemic disrupts social and economic systems, the government, directly and indirectly, involvements while supporting relief to the vulnerable is necessitated during the crisis and beyond
Therefore, the technical policy brief/position paper is part of the paper series that analyses governance issues within the pandemic with direct relevant intervention, while contextualizes the case beyond the COVID 19 pandemic and in particular this paper series, is analyzing Food Security, Availability, Affordability, Accessibility & Productivity within the epidemic and Post COVID 19 scenario.

As the need for re-engagement of corporate governance rise to increase employment opportunities, while social responsibility is decreasing, so is the need to questions what is corporate governance?, what role does its play in the service delivery?, In perspective, one would question whether it's necessary but an idea fact is that good corporate governance enhances service delivery putting forwards accountability and transparency as benchmarks for a democratic system. Throughout the world, private enterprise and corporation are recognized as essential sources of economic growth and human progress standing at the basis for prosperity and individual freedom. However, in Uganda lesser attention has been given to how corporate governance is linked to better service delivery in mainstream governance structures and system. According to Gantchev, Nickolay, Giannetti and Mariassunta (2019). 2 Democracy is not an appropriate metaphor for corporate governance; however Ritchie (2019), 3 observes that democracy in corporate governance is enhanced through corporate political responsibility focusing on issues of climate change, social protection, and tax compliance, implementation of international and national legislation but more importantly undertake social welfare of the people. In the reality that politics is about the things that matter, then it's imperative to draw corporate governance in the arena of democratizing at the time aspects of the economy are faced with unfair competition, unfair regulatory policy, non-compliance and political interference.

The East African region presents a  unique case study for refugee management and protection. Not only have almost all  East African countries(apart from Tanzania) experienced violent conflicts that forced millions of their citizens out as refugees or political asylum seekers but some countries in the region have also played key roles in hosting millions of refugees even from the horn of  Africa. Most fundamentally, the region has played a pivotal role in refugee management and protection. This paper provides a  comprehensive review of the East Africa refugee management framework both from legal, economic and political angles. In doing so, the paper provides a  comparative analysis of different refugee management approaches in five East African member states.

In the 2016 youth parliamentary election, in the post-election, many actors including  civil society groups in Uganda want the government to consider conducting a national review of the special interest groups’ representation in Parliament to evaluate the need for their continued representation and the election system.
Youth activists say voting youth representatives through electoral colleges has been riddled with massive irregularities, citing chaotic regional Youth Members of Parliament elections that were marred by widespread voter bribery, intimidation of voters and candidates as well as the state inspired violence. The Inclusion of non-delegates into the Electoral College system and failure and possibility of reviewing the Electoral College system

Uganda continues to grapple with the challenge of unemployment, with the problem nowhere more prevalent than amongst its youth population. Whereas Universities across the country churn out thousands of graduates every year, barely a quarter of those are absorbed in the job market. Entrepreneurship has long been fronted by both policymakers and development analysts as one sure way of solving this employment deficit, and the public seems to have gotten the memo. Last year, Uganda was ranked the most entrepreneurial country in the world, by Approved Index, a global firm that asses the levels of entrepreneurship among countries. The study noted that 28% of Uganda's adult population started businesses in the last 42 months, almost twice as high a rate as any other country in the world. For the majority of respondents, unemployment and the need for survival catalyzed their enterprise. But a majority of these businesses die almost as fast as they get started. In fact, studies show that over 90% of these enterprises never survive to celebrate their first birthdays. The reasons for this attrition are many and varied, but a deeper look into the problem points to a giant disconnect between individual passion if not desperation-driven business ideas of individuals, and the business acumen or expertise required to not only get them actualized but also sustain them. This disconnect is the gist of our paper: Universities, we believe, are the nexus between education and employment and there has to be systemic institutional mechanisms, or innovation hubs, where business ideas are conceptualized and incubated them into robust, actionable initiatives onto the actualization stage.

Globalization and trade imbalances of emerging market economies put into context the changing dynamic of markets influenced by trade imbalances continuing to undermine emerging markets. In the globalization of African countries within the 54 member " s states, we question whether the economic free trade treaties are rising or crumbling economies. In the reality that we increasingly view globalization as a process whereby people, communications, trade, investments, and markets are trending more cross-national boundaries. 1 The worldwide interconnectedness between nation-states becomes supplemented by globalization as a process in which basic social arrangements like power,

The developing and emerging economies " account for approximately 30 percent and 70 percent of the world's extreme poor and this is reflected by " limited access to social protection (Graduate Institute Geneva 2017). Decent work and livelihood creation are chief determinants in the socioeconomic empowerment of youth and yet they also important for the sustainable human development. Unemployment is increasingly being recognized as one of the serious problems affecting the youth in Uganda. According to the Uganda Youth survey report, the overall unemployment among youth was about 52% and where 22% of the youth reported were self-employed while 26% were in formal employment (Uganda youth survey report 2015). In contrast, its highlighted that self-employment rates were lowest among youth with university level education and putting reality to perspective, we have to question why this is so beyond the narrative of contemplating on the education system. With 52% unemployment rate high among youth, it is alarming that the country has to only create a sufficient number of formal jobs to absorb all those who want to work but also focus on decent jobs with good working condition. It is possible that with these numbers, there young people with positive altitude, with qualification and ability to work but the absence of decent jobs often turns them away. Many decide to move to informal employment, which is typically characterized by low productivity and more precarious working conditions. (Graduate Institute Geneva 2017) that brings them to the cycle of unemployable and underemployed. Even where government has introduced number of programs, polices, strategies in its effort against the employment challenge among these include Youth livelihood program, Youth capital venture fund, Despite the intervention, there are structural challenges that this paper puts into perspective in the reality of vulnerable employment. The Challenges of employment when addressed quantitatively will improve living standards and eradicate poverty among many, but the question is; what kind of employment will nurture sustainable growth and development if quality employment is absent?