This study aimed at exploring the extent the youth in Nankulabye in Kampala City cope with the unemployment problem. The study aimed to: document the different activities that the youth engage in to mitigate unemployment, find out the extent the youth utilize the benefits from the activities engaged in for improved welfare, analyze the prospects and opportunities in sustaining activities the youth engage in for improved welfare and find out the constraints the youth face adopting strategies to cope with unemployment. A cross-sectional design applying both qualitative and quantitative approaches was used in undertaking this study. The quantitative data was obtained from116 unemployed youth while the qualitative data was collected from 5 key informants (LC1, 1 employer to the youth and 3 parents/caretakers/guardians) to the youth. The study found that youths in Nankulabye engaged in different activities to cope with the ever increasing unemployment. Majority male youth (56.7%) engaged in casual work e.g., operating chapatti stalls, market vending and other small scale businesses. On the other hand, majority females (73.4%) depended on their parents, relatives and partners to cope with unemployment challenges. Other activities that the study found youth engage in include volunteering in different non-governmental organizations, trainings on skills development and advancing for further education especially on scholarships. The study also found that youths in Nakulabye reported improved welfare as a result of the income generating activities they engaged in to cope with unemployment. Youths reported that they were able to afford the basic necessities of life such as food, clothing and shelter. Majority of the youths interviewed reported that they were able to save a portion of the profits/income they earned and of them invested in other ventures to increase on their income. The study revealed that personal attributes such as hard work (35.6%), education (34.9%), religious and cultural beliefs and attitude towards work (15.1%) helped youths to sustain the income generating activities they had started up. The study found that youths encountered challenges in coping with unemployment and these included lack of capital (30.2%), limited wages and lack of experience, sexual harassment (10.5%), confection of goods by KCCA coupled with high taxes as well as lack of connections.

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