TeamUp introduces the cross-sector collaboration approach to Members of Parliament
After six years of implementing the TeamUp program at district and community levels coupled with engagements with technical teams in various central government ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs), TeamUp partners are introducing the cross-sector collaboration approach to Members of Parliament (MPs) as the initial step in stimulating policy and legal reforms to institutionalise the model.
On 20th November 2024, the TeamUp Program Coordination Unit convened a Parliamentary Dialogue in Kampala, which brought together leaders of Parliamentary Committees that oversee the sectors of TeamUp program focus, which include agriculture, water and health.
The theme of the dialogue was “Building Resilient Communities: A Collaborative Approach to Youth Empowerment and Sustainable Development through Skills Development, Health Promotion and Access to Crucial Services”
The dialogue was critical for MPs to understand the cross-sector approach ahead of the broader replication and scale-up of TeamUp in Uganda.
A total of 25 MPs and 12 parliamentary technical staff attended the dialogue, which was intended to:
- Introduce the TeamUp approach to MPs
- Discuss how the TeamUp model can leverage existing youth-focused policies and programs, identify gaps and co-create solutions for effective youth development.
- Evaluate the government’s readiness regarding human resources, technical expertise, and budget allocation to replicate the TeamUp model at national and district levels.
- Seek the support of legislators for scaling TeamUp at the district and national levels and identify policy champions who can advocate for cross-sector collaboration.
The TeamUp leadership comprising the Head of the Program Coordination Unit, Monica Basemera, the Chief Executive Officer of Action for Health Uganda Sarah Kintu, the Co-Country Manager of Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung, Felix Opio, the Managing Director of Whave Solutions, Frederic Bergeron, and youth a representative from Mityana shared with MPs about TeamUp’s background, interventions, achievements, key milestones, challenges and prospects for replication.
The MPs observed the need for mindset change among the youth to fully participate in development programs and sustain the impact on their lives and entire communities. They applauded the holistic approach under the cross-sector collaboration and called for its replication in more districts.
The MPs noted that Uganda has a fairly adequate policy and legal framework regarding youth empowerment, but gaps remained in the planning, coordination and implementation of youth-focused and other livelihood programs. The MPs emphasised the need for more youth-focused affirmative action regarding financial inclusion, girl-child protection and employment.
Participants recommended careful documentation of the impact of the cross-sector approach to generate evidence for scaling it up in national development programs.
Targeting young people aged 15-30, especially those in rural areas, TeamUp’s work spans three key sectors: Health, Agriculture, and Water. The program primarily focuses on a) Improving health with a specific focus on sexual reproductive health and problems related to unsafe water sources, sanitation and hygiene that impede youth development, b) Improving the economic situation of youth and their families through agribusiness and entrepreneurship support, c) Ensuring the functionality of water sources by preventive maintenance, d) Enabling youth to make their voices heard in decision-making processes.
TeamUp is a strategic development partnership initiated by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), with co-funding from Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevölkerung (DSW), Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung (HRNS), and Siemens Stiftung. It leverages the combined expertise and resources of the consortium partners, including Action 4 Health Uganda (A4HU), HRNS, and Whave Solutions, to deliver a cross-sector development model aimed at improving the lives of young people in rural Uganda.
