While elections provide an opportunity for citizens to exercise their fundamental right to elect leaders, this right can only be more meaningful with leveled playing field and an engaged civically competent citizenry. Unfortunately, in the districts of Kasese and Bundibugyo Uganda’s Rwenzori sub-region, elections are often characterized by identity based political mobilization often resulting into violence.
To guarantee meaningful sustainable democracy, democratic principles need to be entrenched as a way of life among young people so they can grow up with democratic culture as part of their value systems. This project helped CAF to implement civic empowerment for peace and democracy project which aimed at nurturing the culture of democratic engagement among the young people to enable sustainable democratic participation. The project organized a series of innovative activities such youth debates, creative arts in all its forms, social media, radio debates and Youth Democracy festival that helped build an alert system of civically competent citizenry that actively and meaningfully participate in the democratic governance discourse.
OBJECTIVES
1- Empower young people in and out of schools in Kasese and Bundibugyo districts with platforms to meaningfully engage and dialogue on key local, national and global issues affecting them while at the same time building their tolerance of divergent opinion, leadership, analytical and critical thinking skills.
2- Document the impact of the 2016 deadly violence on the survivors and victims in Kasese and Bundibugyo districts and amplify their voices for meaningful transitional and restorative justice to address their plight and needs.