It was two days (25th-26th October, 2016) of extensive networking and expansion of knowledge at the European Union - International Republican Institute (EU-IRI) workshop on modalities for strengthening the participation of women and youth in politics. The various aspects of the subject matter discussed are as follows:
*Barriers to participation
*The role of lobbying & advocacy
*Role of Constitutional amendment
*Fund-raising and political mentoring
*Commitment of Political Parties/Leaders/Influencers
*Social justice & participation
Some of the participants are:
*Sentell Barnes - IRI Country Director
*Pauline Torehall - EU Minister Counsellor, Head of Politics, Press & Information section
*Nathalie Ebead - International IDEA, Stockholm, Sweden
*Audra Degesys Lykos - Democracy & Governance Officer, USAID
*Kurt Cornelis - Head of Cooperation, EU Delegation to Nigeria & ECOWAS
*Olufunke Baruwa - CEO, Nigeria Women Trust Fund (NWTF)
*Dr. Dayo Oluyemi-Kusa - Chairperson, Board of Directors, National Peace Summit Group (NPSG)
*Hon. (Barr) Mulikat Adeola-Akande - Fmr. Majority Leader, Federal House of Representatives
*Barr. Ebere Ifendu - President, Women in Politics Forum (WIPF)
*Barr. Ismael Ahmed - APC Youth Forum
*Uju Ogoko - PDP e-Women
*Hon (Amb) Nkoyo Toyo - Lead Special Adviser to Cross River state Governor on SDGs
*Iyom Josephine Anenih - Fmr. Minister, Women Affairs & Founder Women Foundation of Nigeria (WFN)
*Erelu Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi - Former First Lady, Ekiti state/Gender & Development specialist
Some of the recommendations are as follows:
*It is not enough to participate, it is more important to engage the process of politics.
*Mentoring should be a two-way street. There could also be reverse mentoring of the older party members by the younger ones.
*Religion should not be used as a weapon against participation.
*Youth & women can succeed at political participation if they do the following:
-Do a SWOT analysis of yourself.
-Understand your potential terrain & articulate why you are running for office.
-Build social & political capital
-Always have a plan B just in case you lose election.
-Political use of networks & movements (e.g. women/youth wings of Political Parties.
-Make political demands (e.g. maternal mortality, VAW, etc)
-Have your own leadership agenda, which will determine the legacy you leave behind.
-Self care - Undergo comprehensive physical examination yearly
-Document experiences.
DO NOT:
-Do not mix business with pleasure
-Do not burn bridges.
-Do not borrow money to participate in politics.
-Be security concious always. Don't live your life on social media.
-Don't join in activities that are inimical to your Party.
-Don't patronise spiritual merchants.
On the whole, it appears the strategies are inexhaustible in a two-day seminar. I only hope this instructive seminar would usher in an era of effective engagement of women and youth in Nigerian politics.
30th October, 2016
*Meet Adeleye-Fayemi, one of the top 100 people in the world in advancing women & girls' rights #Nigeria #AfricaPride https://t.co/yCqfYFAkOQ
*My view: Let's talk about Hillary Clinton from a legal, constitutional standpoint by Paul Van Dan www.desertnews.com/article/.../my-view-lets-talk-about-hillary
*How to govern like a feminist http://www.elle.com/culture/career-politics/a40098/how-to...
*British PM, Theresa May has a style mantra http://www.popsugar.com/fashion/british/prime-minister...
*I'd like to address this absurd 'Hillary Clinton is the lesser of two evils' nonsense http://www.forwardprogressives.com/id-like-address-absurd...
*From Pakistan to Argentina: These 59 countries had a woman leader before the US time.com/4557050/woman-leaders-world-election-hillary-clinton/
'This team has so uch to be proud about. Whatever happens tonight, thank you for everything https://t.co/x13iWOzlLL
*Women & political representation http://www.genderhub.org/.../women-and-political-representation/
*Challenges to women's participation in politics http://www.genderhub/.../challenges-to-women-active-participation...
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