Cross-border meeting between youth and local authorities from Uganda and Tanzania in Mutukula-Uganda

A cross border exchange meeting took place between the local authorities and youth from the two sides of the Mutukula border - Uganda and Tanzania - under the theme: ’’ Youth and Women participation in the development processes: challenges and opportunities’’. The activity was organized in Mutukula-Uganda on June 25, 2022, by three partners of the consortium of the project ‘’Great Lakes Youth Network for Dialogue and Peace. Our Diversity our Opportunity! ‘’ lead by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung DRC, including Leo Africa Institute and Cornerstone Development from Uganda and Actions for Democracy and Local Governance from Tanzania.

The event was held at the Town Hall/Community Center in Mutukula Town Council and a total 40 persons have attended the meeting, of which 23 were men and 17 women. The aim of the exchange was to strengthen the collaboration between the youth and the local authorities in the peacebuilding, development, and conflict prevention process in the Great Lakes region but also to strengthen the collaboration between the two countries.

Several challenges that the youth face were pointed out including but not limited to; a high level of mistrust between the two countries which hinders collaboration in all sectors, local authorities disregarding the youth potential and not engaging them and lack of information among the youth.

It was great to see the local authorities and the youth owning responsibility and committing to make changes. The facilitators emphasized and urged the youth and the local leaders to promote unity and have a strong vision, for the two countries of working together.

One of the action points was to form a strong network of the youth and leaders between the two countries to continue exchanging about the issue that concern them. In this effect, a WhatsApp group was formed, and discussions are ongoing.

Early in October 2021, a cross-border exchange on gender in the peace building and conflict prevention process in the Great Lakes region between the DRC and Rwanda, Rwanda was organized in the border city of Gisenyi. A total of 30 youth and nine local authorities from the two countries took part in the activity. The youth raised common obstacles to the promotion of gender, including backward cultures and traditions; insecurity; difficult access to information for women; the low economic power of women, etc.