Young people in Lira City East Division have been urged to embrace agriculture, participate in government economic empowerment programmes, and adopt a production-oriented mindset as a way of improving household incomes and escaping poverty.
The call was made by the Female Youth Councillor for Lira City East Division, Vivian Mildred Oyella, on Tuesday, August 25, during the launch of an irrigation facility for a coffee farmer in Adwila, Lira City. The launch brought together several stakeholders, including the Deputy Resident City Commissioner for Lira East Division, the mayor, town clerk, environment officer, and other local leaders.
Oyella said young people should move away from dependency and take advantage of available opportunities to engage in productive enterprises. She cited programmes such as the Parish Development Model (PDM) and Emyooga as avenues through which youth can access support to establish and expand income-generating activities.
She said the youth must become active in production and that agriculture should not be viewed simply as a means of survival. According to her, when properly organised, mechanised, and connected to markets, agriculture can provide a powerful pathway to wealth creation. She urged the youth to embrace discipline, teamwork, saving, and investment, saying sustainable wealth can not be built through dependence on handouts.
Oyella commended the coffee farmer Obongo Oleke for investing in irrigation, saying the facility demonstrated how technology and agricultural production can work together to improve household incomes. She added that irrigation would help the farmer overcome challenges associated with inadequate rainfall while strengthening coffee production, productivity, and resilience.
The councillor encouraged young people to embrace the government’s efforts to transform households from subsistence production to a money economy through commercial agriculture. She said her office would intensify youth engagements across Lira East Division, focusing on mindset transformation, group dynamics, productive enterprises, and the aspirations of Vision 2040.
Oyella said government programmes should not be viewed merely as sources of financial assistance but as opportunities for citizens to establish sustainable enterprises and contribute to economic development. She urged young people to identify viable opportunities within their communities, work together and turn them into profitable ventures, stressing that the future of communities would depend on organised, disciplined and productive young people who are ready to utilise available opportunities.
The irrigation project provided a practical example of how investment in agricultural technology can support commercial production and household transformation, as leaders continue to encourage residents to shift from subsistence activities to productive, market-oriented livelihoods.