Vibrant Okello Empowers Youth With Tech Skills Through His Hope Alive Welding &Metal fabrication Project in Lango

By Gloria Ageno 

Lango, Uganda: The Director of Hope Alive skilling and vocational centre ( Hope Alive Metal and Fabrication, Lira ) Speacilaist in welding and Metal Fabrication ,located in Lira City, has opened a life changing initiative of skilling mainly the disadvantaged youth in Lango sub-region.

It is located in Juba Road cell,lpito Aweno lpito Gweno ward,Lira City West Division ,Lira City and was opened in 2016 with a total of 23 vocational students.

While speaking to The Ankole Times newspaper on Tuesday morning, from Juba road in Lira City, Okello Denis,the director of the training centre,said at the moment he has acquired a new car and a good hectares of land outside the City area for future expansion of the training centre.

His mission is to train hundreds of disadvantaged youth in Lango sub-region and outside Lango sub-region so that they become self employed and fight poverty as well as unemployment challenges among the current youth.

Okello was an orphan ,dropped out from school due to financial constraints and dreamt of being self employed as an orphan at his childhood and is now smiling with millions of shillings in his pocket daily.

It is now on this background ,that he would like to teach the youth to be skilful and get immediate answer to the challenges of unemployment by being self employed and creative enough.

He (Okello Denis)said they are mainly engaging in welding doors,gates and sliding windows among others ,though he is considering to amalgamate other new courses in future.

The training period ranges from 6 months-one(1) year.The welding and metal fabrication vocational training centre mainly targets out of school youth, children on the Street and total orphans.

He urged the youth to be job creators instead of job seekers adding that modern life is driven towards technology and creativity.

Director Okello said instead of spending time in casino, playing cards and betting ,the youth should consult him on how he started his progress and why he is making a difference.

Among notable challenges are, lack of start up tools for thoset who have successfully completed the training course and above all, is that the machines are very expensive with a full set costing close to 2 million shillings.

Okello Denis has a well built furnished residential house in Omodo Market area and is able to pay school fees for his children.

The vibrant Okello is now appealing to non governmental organization and government agencies to come in and support the trained youth with start up capital for the workshop. 

He revealed that after most of these youth, he struggled to support and moblize for resources to help start their workshop after training them. 

For more information contact the Director of Hope Alive Welding and Metal Fabrication on Telephone number +256 777 806 714.