NTLI at the University of Juba partnered with the Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare. Together they organized a five-day training on Women, Peace and Security under the theme ‘Young Women Leading for Peace’. The training took place at Royal Palace Hotel in Juba, from 27th to 31st July, 2020. It brought together 21 young and vibrant women representing high school graduates, university students and graduates, civil society organizations, Faith Based Organizations, Non-Governmental Organizations, Women’s Associations, Political Parties and Government Institutions.
The overall objective of the project was to strengthen the skills of the women to be able to influence peace building processes in South Sudan and beyond. Specifically, the training aimed at equipping participants with skills and knowledge that would enable them to take leadership in information collection, conflict mapping and analysis with a gender perspective in order to influence the implementation of the women, peace and security agenda. To this effect a number of topics were covered including transformational leadership, key policy frameworks for women’s human rights, conflict mapping, gender analysis, advocacy and lobbying, self-worth, digital communication and public speaking skills among others.
Through interaction, participants were able to connect and identify challenges encountered by young women that could impede the attainment of the women, peace and security agenda. These include lack of sufficient information and networks to inform young people about peacebuilding initiatives, lack of mentors to support young women leaders, persistent gender based violence and harmful practices and the intergenerational gap between older and young women hampering continuous discussion and experience sharing.
The participants requested for continuous support and creation platforms for mentoring and coaching of young women leaders to harness transformational leadership, change mindsets and eradicate harmful traditional practices. Correspondingly, special funding to facilitate implementation of advocacy skills should be built into the programmes to enable young people influence the socio-economic and political issues touching their lives.