Youth demand dedicated green fund to fuel climate action, end tokenism

Youth climate activists in Uganda are calling on the government to establish a dedicated green fund to boost their participation in sustainable climate action, warning that systemic financial barriers and tokenism continue to hinder their impact despite accounting for the vast majority of the country’s population.

The call was made on Wednesday, August 12, during a workshop on youth climate leadership and solutions held in Kampala, where young leaders highlighted pressing challenges in accessing climate finance, technical expertise, and policy-making spaces to tackle the worsening climate crisis.

Speaking to this publication after the workshop, Ms Jemimah Babirye Kasibbo, Programme Manager at the Green Africa Youth Organisation (GAYO) Uganda, urged the government to set up targeted financial mechanisms specifically designed for youth-led community solutions and green jobs.
Ms Kasibbo noted that severe financial constraints routinely derail youth initiatives spanning carbon projects, policy advocacy, and sustainable agriculture.

“We have seen several funds come up from the climate change department, but we haven’t seen practical ways these funds can be accessed by the young people,” Ms Kasibbo observed.
She cautioned against superficial youth engagement, arguing that current inclusion efforts often fail to deliver meaningful, long-term participation.
“Much as there have been efforts for the young people to join the space, we are still seeing that there is a lot of tokenism; in this case, when young people come, it’s more of a tick-off-numbers, but we don’t see how they will be involved later on,” she added.

Beyond financing, Ms Kasibbo emphasized the need for heavy investment in climate education and practical skills training, explaining that while enthusiasm among the youth is high, many lack the technical capacity to scale and sustain their environmental projects. She further called on authorities to strictly regulate deforestation, industrial pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions—the core drivers of environmental degradation in Uganda.

Echoing these concerns, Ms Prossy Namutebi, an environmentalist, advocated for integrating climate action directly into the primary school curriculum to build foundational awareness among children.
“I heard about AIDS ever since I was in primary one, but when it comes to climate action, these are things that come later in life, and in most cases you understand it after experiencing it,” Ms Namutebi said.

She stressed the importance of addressing gaps in strategic climate communication, policy engagement, climate justice, carbon market navigation, and sustainable farming methods.
In response to the demands, Mr Emmanuel Muliisa, an official from the Ministry of Water and Environment, acknowledged that empowering young innovators is vital for strengthening Uganda’s resilience against climate-driven disasters like severe flooding, landslides, and prolonged droughts.

“We need an intersection between the government mobilising resources and the youths who have a lot of climate change-related projects in the communities,” Mr Muliisa said. “These resources for climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts should also partly be channelled to support these green young businesses.”

The push for direct resource allocation comes at a critical juncture for Uganda. Regions such as Karamoja are grappling with severe climate vulnerabilities, where erratic rainfall and persistent dry spells continue to decimate livestock, agriculture, and household livelihoods. According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report, more than 473,000 people in the Karamoja Sub-region face acute food insecurity largely driven by climate impacts.

While institutional funding is expanding, direct access for youth organizations remains limited. In the FY2026/27 National Budget, the Government allocated Shs1.013 trillion to the Water, Sanitation and Environment sector. Of this total, Shs494.08 billion was directed toward restoring degraded wetlands, forests, riverbanks, and lakeshores, while Shs9.6 billion was designated for early warning systems and disaster hazard mitigation.