From Scrolling to Opportunity: How TeamUp Uganda Empowers Youth Through Digital Literacy

For John Bosco Mukiibi from Uganda, social media has become much more than a place to scroll. He uses platforms like LinkedIn, WhatsApp, and Instagram to share field updates, access relevant knowledge, and make his work visible beyond his immediate community. Over time, this presence began to translate into real-life opportunities. “Through social media, I have gained access to my new employment as a Field Extension Worker,” he reports. “The Microfinance Support Centre contacted me via LinkedIn after seeing posts about my work with Village Savings and Loan Associations.”

His example shows how young people can use digital platforms to learn, build networks, gain visibility, and access tangible opportunities. He is one of the young people who have started using digital platforms more strategically through TeamUp Uganda.

TeamUp Uganda is a cross-sectoral youth empowerment program in which Hanns R. Neumann Stiftung (HRNS) works alongside Deutsche Stiftung Weltbevölkerung (DSW) and Siemens Stiftung with funding from the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), together with Action 4 Health Uganda, HRNS Uganda and Whave Solutions as implementing partners. It supports young people in rural areas through an integrated approach that combines agriculture and livelihoods, water, sanitation and hygiene, and health.

Digital literacy fits directly into this wider vision. Many TeamUp youth have started small businesses, developed practical skills or taken on active community roles. Digital platforms can make these achievements visible, connect youth to peers and institutions, and help them speak in their own voice. But access alone does not mean empowerment – young people need to use digital tools safely, responsibly, and purposefully.

“We knew that once young people started earning an income, many would buy a phone as one of their first investments,” says Monica Basemera, Head of the Program Coordination Unit at TeamUp Uganda. “We wanted to build on that and help them use digital tools not only for markets, but also for social cohesion and visibility – so they could showcase what they are doing and take pride in their work.”

In April 2025, HRNS contracted a social enterprise to conduct smartphone and social media training for youth in Mityana and Kassanda. In total, 200 youth – 117 young men and 83 young women – were trained to use digital platforms for communication, advocacy and business promotion. The training was hands-on: Participants created business accounts, designed posters, edited videos and developed digital storytelling content. Online safety was another key component, including privacy, protection from scams, responsible posting, searching for relevant information and identifying misinformation.

The training helped youth use digital platforms more intentionally. “Before, many were already online,” says Proscovia Nnamulondo, Communication and Advocacy Specialist at TeamUp, “but mostly consumed content with little relevance to their welfare or income.” After the training, they learned to find relevant information to improve productivity and broaden their knowledge. For some, it was as if “a veil was lifted off their heads”: They became more visible and began to see themselves as part of a wider world.

This growing confidence is visible in the stories shared by TeamUp youth:

Leonard Reagan Kulubya, a Sexual Reproductive Health Advocacy Officer with TeamUp Uganda, uses social media to build his professional profile and engage in digital advocacy. He also encourages his peers to embrace the opportunities social media can offer. “It has completely shifted my professional trajectory and helped me find my voice,” he says. What once might have been a space for scrolling has become, in his words, a “school of learning”.

For others, online presence has created new business opportunities:

Suzan Nassolo, founder of EverGrow Organics and co-founder of Kirooto Innovation Academy, uses social media to raise awareness about organic farming solutions and connect with customers, partners, and wider networks. “Since becoming more active on social media, I have gained greater visibility for both myself and EverGrow Organics,” she says. “It has helped me grow my confidence as a young entrepreneur, expand my professional network and access learning opportunities.” This visibility has opened new markets: Through LinkedIn, EverGrow Organics has connected with customers in Kenya and Rwanda and attracted trainings, mentorship, partnerships, and export opportunities. “We are all over Uganda because of social media,” she reports.

Digital literacy can open new opportunities for young people – but TeamUp’s experience shows that digital empowerment needs guidance. Five lessons stand out for organizations that want to support youth in digital spaces.

Digital skills become powerful when they build on real experiences. “Having a product to sell or a skill to talk about is a driver,” says Nnamulondo. “The question is: What are the youth going to show out there?” This is why Rhoda Kulabako, Project Manager for HRNS, stresses that social media “should not be an instant intervention,” but should come after young people have gained knowledge and experiences they can showcase.

Digital participation comes with risks, including scams and fraud. For Basemera, protection and awareness need to be built in from the beginning. “One of the key critical things is around privacy and safety,” she says. “It must be embedded, especially if you are working with vulnerable communities.” This also includes misinformation – “an understanding of what is real and what is not real” – as well as protection from cyberbullying.

Access cannot be taken for granted. Many youth still face limited access to smartphones, high data costs and unstable connectivity. As Kulabako points out, some young people in Uganda have phones with internet access, while others can only call or send messages. Connectivity is another barrier: “There are some areas where internet connectivity is really bad,” she adds. “And when the connectivity is poor, it consumes a lot of data.” This is especially challenging for rural youth with seasonal incomes.

Not everyone can join a training directly. To scale digital literacy, organizations should select youth with smartphone access, basic digital skills, community ties and good project knowledge. For Kulabako, this gives the approach wider relevance: “The youth themselves are showcasing what they do and cascading information to other youth who do not have the same opportunities. That is something that should not be taken lightly.”

A two-day training can open doors, but only continued support turns new skills into practice. TeamUp created Messenger groups where participants could ask questions and receive guidance after the training. Peers, project staff and trainers also helped keep the momentum going by liking, commenting on, and reposting youth content – a form of recognition that motivated many participants. “After field activities, TeamUp staff members encourage youth to talk about what they have done online,” says Nnamulondo. “And whenever they see that a young person has achieved a milestone, they encourage them to share it.” Over time, Basemera observed, youth also began “supporting each other, liking each other’s posts, commenting and reposting.”

Digital literacy is about more than using smartphones or social media more effectively. In TeamUp Uganda, it has translated into tangible changes: a new employment opportunity for John Bosco Mukiibi, greater business visibility for Suzan Nassolo, and voice and professional growth for Leonard Reagan Kulubya.

“Just because young people live in rural areas, they shouldn’t be written off as not being able to be introduced into the digital world,” Basemera says. TeamUp’s experience shows what can happen when young people are given access, guidance and trust: “They are getting more ambitious in thinking about the things they can achieve. We just handed them the tools, and they essentially ran off with it.”

This is where digital literacy becomes empowerment. Social media can become a bridge – from local action to public visibility, from isolation to connection, and from participation to voice. Or, as Basemera puts it, “the outside has come to them, and they don’t feel like outsiders anymore.” Nnamulondo confirms this shift: “A lot of boundaries and borders have been broken.”