Recruitment Agencies in Uganda: Fueling Desperation and Exploitation of Our Youth
By Don Zayeed Sayeed
Unemployment is one of the most pressing challenges facing Uganda today. Thousands of young men and women graduate from schools, vocational institutes, and universities every year with hopes of securing meaningful employment. Unfortunately, the local job market cannot absorb the growing labor force, and for many, the only alternative appears to be searching for opportunities abroad.
This desperation has created fertile ground for exploitation. Unscrupulous recruitment agencies in Uganda have taken advantage of unemployed youth by luring them with promises of high-paying jobs in the Middle East, Asia, and beyond. Behind these promises lies a system riddled with corruption, deception, and abuse that has ruined countless lives.
Fake Jobs and False Promises
One of the most common tactics used by fraudulent agencies is the advertising of fake jobs. Attractive offers such as “Travel on Loan,” “Urgent Jobs Abroad,” or “Guaranteed Visa and Flight” flood social media, radio, and posters across towns. These offers appear genuine, but they often lead to nothing more than a scam.
Youth are invited to fake interviews, conducted by fake interviewers, and issued fake job offer letters that carry the logos of legitimate companies. These letters are nothing more than tools to trick desperate job seekers into paying large sums of money. Once the money is paid, the agencies disappear, leaving victims stranded and hopeless.
Passport Seizures and Exploitation
For those who manage to secure legitimate contracts abroad, the nightmare often continues. Recruitment agencies frequently seize the passports of workers under the pretext of “processing travel documents” or “protecting company property.” In reality, this practice strips workers of their freedom and makes them vulnerable to exploitation.
In Middle Eastern countries, especially, many Ugandan workers report torture, cruel treatment, and exploitation. Passports are confiscated upon arrival, and workers are trapped in foreign households or companies with no means of escape.
Torture and Inhumane Working Conditions
The testimonies from many returnees reveal the shocking reality of working abroad. Domestic workers, in particular, are subjected to long working hours, physical abuse, verbal harassment, and even sexual assault. Some have been denied food, forced to sleep in kitchens or on floors, and locked indoors for months without communication with their families.
Reports of torture, mysterious deaths, and workers returning in coffins have become tragically common. Every coffin that arrives at Entebbe Airport is a painful reminder of how deeply flawed and exploitative this system has become.
Salary Inequalities and Unfair Treatment
Even those who survive the harsh conditions face another injustice: salary inequalities. Workers from Africa, including Uganda, are often paid far less than workers from countries like the Philippines, Nepal, or India for the exact same job.
For example, a Ugandan domestic worker may earn as little as $150–$200 per month, while her counterpart from the Philippines earns $400–$600 for identical duties. This racial and national discrimination is a form of modern-day slavery that continues to humiliate and degrade African workers.
How Agencies Exploit Both Employers and Workers
What makes the situation worse is the double exploitation practiced by many Ugandan recruitment agencies. Employers abroad already pay the full cost of travel, visas, accommodation, and medical insurance. Yet agencies in Uganda still charge job seekers exorbitant fees sometimes millions of shillings to secure jobs that are already fully funded by the employer.
This practice not only robs unemployed youth of their last savings but also forces many families to sell land, livestock, and property to raise the fees. When the promised jobs turn out to be fake, the families are left in deeper poverty and despair.
A Call for Reform and Accountability
This cycle of exploitation must end. As Ugandans, we cannot continue to allow our young people to be robbed, abused, and enslaved under the pretense of foreign employment. The government must take stronger action to regulate recruitment agencies, crack down on scams, and protect the dignity of our workers abroad.
At the Don Zayeed Foundation, we are working tirelessly with trusted recruiters in Europe and the Middle East to create a transparent and fair recruitment system. Our goal is simple: no job seeker should ever pay for employment opportunities or related expenses such as visas, passports, flights, or medical insurance.
Recruitment should be free. Employers already cover these costs, and job seekers should never be treated as a source of income for exploitative middlemen.
Conclusion
Ugandan youth deserve more than false promises, abuse, and exploitation. They deserve dignity, fair treatment, and the opportunity to work in environments where their rights are respected. It is time to expose the lies, dismantle the exploitative systems, and create pathways that protect our young people from modern-day slavery.
The dream of working abroad should not turn into a nightmare. Together, we must stand against recruitment scams, exploitation, and inequality, and build a future where opportunity abroad means hope, not despair.
