The 5th sitting of the East African Community Youth Parliament (Vijana Assembly) facilitated by Faraja Africa Foundation and the East African Legislative Assembly in partnership with Akina mama wa Afrika and partners brought together over 100 youth parliamentarians from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, DRC and South Sudan to discuss pressing matters including climate-change, sexual and reproductive health and rights, agriculture, violence and conflict resolution, amongst others.

During the sessions, members echoed the urgent need for a harmonized approach to the issue of single-use plastics in East Africa and brought forward a motion urging member states to adopt legislation to curb the impacts that single-use plastics have on our environment, economy, climate and human health across the region.

 Single-use plastics and climate change 

The plastic industry is responsible for at least 232 million tonnes of planet-warming emissions each year, according to the Beyond Plastics report and their impact doesn’t stop there. 

From its production to its end-of-life, plastics pump greenhouse gases at every stage of their life cycle, starting from the fossil fuels extracted underground, to extreme temperatures and excessive amounts of water used to create, transform and mould them.

Once they’re created, they never disappear. They break into small particles – micro-plastics – that have been found everywhere scientists have dared to look: from human breast milk, to the arctic circle and every part of Lake Victoria from the surface level to the lake floor. Besides polluting our environment and choking our biodiversity, plastics release harmful chemicals and greenhouse gases that contribute to the climate emergency.

Waste management, with plastics in particular, has proven to be a huge global challenge considering half of the plastics produced globally are designed to be used only once. According to the UN, we dispose of 300 million tonnes of plastic each year which is almost equivalent to the weight of the entire human population. This post-consumer plastic, or plastic waste almost always ends up in the landfill, ocean, natural environment or are exported to the global south where there is limited to no infrastructure to recycle, manage or safely dispose of this waste. It has been estimated that each year, plastic pollution costs $13 billion in economic damage to marine ecosystems globally.

Studies conducted in Lake Victoria showed that 1 in 5 Nile perch in the lake contain plastics and the highest levels of microplastics in the lake were found on the Ugandan side, which is where the plastic bag ban has not been properly implemented because campaigns to minimize single use plastics like the “kaveera ban” campaign have been ignored by the general population confirming that regional consensus around plastic legislation between member states is crucial to solving this crisis.

 Propositions from EAC youth parliament: banning single-use plastics;

Maliha Sumar member of the East African Youth Parliament representing Tanzania and climate change activist has been actively advocating to push for member states to adopt legislation to ban the use of single-use plastics in the East African Community

‘Since 2005, global exports of plastics have more than doubled in value reaching a record of $1.2 trillion and although we’re more aware of the plastic problem and its dangers, we are not doing nearly enough to tackle this crisis. In fact, plastics are thriving in our global economy. And in some cases, for example, the initiation of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline, we are doing the opposite of what is needed for us to transition into a sustainable, circular economy. It has never been more important to take URGENT action – after all, it is and will be young people who are affected the most. Our shared resources, like Lake Victoria, are dying as a result of pollution and it might be getting too late if we don’t take collective action now. 15,000 people have already called for legislative change. My plea to our legislators is: please listen and take action’

Maliha Sumar, Tanzanian representative to the EAC Youth Parliament 

Today, over 2/3 of UN member states have conveyed a willingness to think about a new global treaty to address marine plastic pollution, while more than 1/4 of member states have directly called for a treaty.

Our plea is this: the time is now for further affirmative action to be taken by East African policymakers in order to preserve the health of our people, environment, and our economy.

Going beyond: The 5^th East African Youth Parliament 2022 speaks up

Plastic pollution is a critical issue, and its links to climate change are well documented. The stark reality of climate change affecting member states in the EAC requires urgent harmonized action. In Tanzania, extreme droughts have resulted in national water and electricity rationing as well as food and water shortages across the region, with some communities having to walk over 15km to fetch water. In Kenya, animals are dying like never seen before and the complete loss of vegetation on pasture lands is leading to extreme desertification forcing indigenous communities away from their homes. We have seen unprecedented rising temperatures across major cities including Nairobi and Dar es Salaam, to flooding, extreme droughts, famine, melting glaciers on Mt Kilimanjaro, and, in spite of being some of the lowest emitters in the world, East African member states are amongst the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. 

This is why it’s of high importance that our governments take serious, synchronized and timely action to address climate change in our region with the following propositions from youth members of parliament;

• Assign an East African Youth Envoy on Climate Change as a focal point for advocacy and implementation of our agenda 
• Ban imports on all plastic waste coming in from outside the region 
• Adopt harmonized legislation across the East African region to effectively tackle illegal plastic trade across the border and pollution across our borders through a legislative ban on specific, unnecessary single-use plastic items including straws, bags, microbeads and more
• Allocate funds within each member states national budget to address damage, adaptation and mitigation efforts
• Lobby the world’s largest polluters and emitters to reduce their footprint 
• Transition into renewable sources of energy and a circular economy 
• Foster a friendly environment through tax exemptions and more for start-ups, industries and innovators who are embracing reusable, biodegradable and compostable plastic substitute

• These propositions and more have been taken to lawmakers at the East African Legislative Assembly to take forward through a petition presented to the speaker’s office at the East African Legislative Assembly.

Call to Action

Young people of East Africa have come up with ways to make a call to action using advocacy tools such as petitions to make their voices heard about the end of the single use plastics.

Petitions such as #plasticrevolution using reuse innovation, education through activism and advocating for a regional ban on single-use plastics. The petition has reached 15,000 signatures calling on our leaders to take action and ban unnecessary single-use plastics across East Africa.

Sign the petition here:End Single use plastics in East Africa 

We call on our leaders now, to hear our pleas, and unite for change

 Written by Maliha Sumar with assistance from Advocacy office 

It’s that time of the year once again!! As a young woman or man, have you ever seen yourself taking charge in addressing issues of your country at the East African level? Well, the 5^th East African Youth Parliament (EAYP), also known as the Vijana Assembly, is here to give you that platform on the 14^th – 15^th of November 2022. EAYP is an invented regional policy advocacy space that brings cross-sector youth leaders to the East Africa Legislative Assembly (EALA) and the East African Community (EAC) Headquarters annually in Arusha, Tanzania. It amplifies youth voices in high-level key decision-making spaces bridging national boundaries to allow cross-border advocacy, mobilisation and lobbying for young people-centred policies and seeking inclusion in democratic processes, service delivery and coordinated governance mechanisms, among other issues key to all youth across gender and all forms of their diversities.

This year, the Vijana Assembly is under the theme; “Intergenerational solidarity: Creating a World for All Ages and Inclusion with descent livelihood amidst the threat of Climate Change in the post-pandemic era.” Cross-cutting issues integrating the theme discussion are gender inclusivity, diversity, human rights, peace and security. The 5^th EAYP seating is expected to have both online and physical young men and women participants. Young people between the ages 18-35 from youth and student council structures, civil society, entrepreneurs, political youth leagues, influencers, opinion leaders and cross-cutting sectors from the East African Region are to participate.

Direct invitations to apply to existing youth structures mentioned above have been made, but here is an opportunity for you to APPLY AS WELL; use the link here https://bit.ly/eacyouthparliament22. Please note it’s limited space; hence, only a few participants will be considered for online and only exceptional ones for physical participation, prioritising the structures and categories above.

Faraja Africa Foundation has organised this year’s sitting in partnership with the East African Legislative Assembly, European Union, Action Aid, Akina Mama Wa Africa, the Parliament of Uganda, East African Civil Society Forum, East African Youth Network, Westminster Foundation for Democracy, Success Hands Tz, Tunaweza, Voice of Youth Tanzania, and other partners. The EAYP is about using the space for advocating for inclusive youth policies and amplifying voices in informing and influencing policy formulation in the East African Community and her partner states. Therefore, all our voices matter; let us use all available avenues on social media and other digital platforms to reach this goal alongside the physical presence.

EAYP Organizing Team

 

 

About Faraja Africa Foundation
Faraja Africa Foundation is youth-led Non-profit International Organization founded in 2013 with a team of youth entrepreneurs and leaders enthusiastic about changing Africa, while strategically placing itself in government structures in empowering youth for development.

Our mission is to prepare emerging leaders to initiate, develop and sustain youth community and economic initiatives; while our vision is, producing informed economically empowered and socially engaged youth-led society with 21st-century skills dedicated to building the African continent.

Faraja (Swahili word for comfort) Africa Foundation empowers and provides young people with the needed skills to succeed. Currently, our focus is on youth leaders in areas of social entrepreneurship, leadership & civic engagement with the strong use of technology and digital tools. Providing ongoing training and coaching for youth (as future leaders) in both civic engagement and entrepreneurship, in achieving sustainable development, and their needs across Africa.

Do you desire to add unmeasurable value to lives of youths?
We’re seeking volunteers who can use their experiences ad skills to add unparalleled value to the sustainable development of today’s youths who will be advocating the future of Uganda (and Africa).

Working in the relaxed office of Faraja (and sometimes in the field), as a volunteer you will find yourself working with a small group of participants or providing one-to-one upskilling to vibrant youths across the landscape of Uganda.

You will support the Programmes team to manage relationships and activities with overseas partner NGOs. Hence, lead on the delivery of the research and development elements of excellent development programmes
You will be part of the team overseeing program development, seeking grants and proposals, and managing youth projects.

You will partake in building and maintaining partnerships and relationships that interacts with other organizations, such as other NGOs, community organizers, and international donors/stakeholders.

You will usually be proactive, creative, outspoken, and optimistic with a preference for achieving outcomes in collaboration with others. You will have a result-oriented approach and propose ways to innovate and continuously improve our communications products, practices, channels and messaging.

Responsibilities and Duties (Skills):
You will usually be expected to engage in the below responsibilities as at when needed.
1. Support programme evaluation, research , and daily management of programmes
2. Support the implementation of the programmes’ policies, and processes
3. Contribute to the development and improvement of systems for managing the evaluation data and sharing of learning between partners
4. Support collection & dissemination of project information, including analysis of existing data
5. Support the standardising of reporting and information processes across all programmes
Contribute to the development, implementation and continuous improvement of excellent monitoring, reporting and evaluation processes.
6. Possess creative problem-solving, effective communication, & stakeholder engagement skills
7. Possess effective interaction with all levels of the organization, and senior management.
8. Possess exceptional ability to remain calm, in control and good humoured even under pressure and tight deadlines.
9. Possess some standard of computer competency and literacy and experience of using Microsoft Office packages.
10. Preferably, be educated to Bachelor’s Degree level in social sciences, legal studies, other related/relevant disciplines, or a measurable level of experience in same/similar field.

To Apply:
Please send your CV and covering letter outlining your suitability for the volunteering position to uche@farajaafricafdn.org on or before the deadline stipulated above.
If you have any queries, please contact Uche on uche@farajaafricafdn.org

The year was 2005, when 23-year-old Dorcus Inzikuru, the “Arua Gazelle” won a gold medal at the inaugural women’s 3,000 metres steeplechase event at the World Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Uganda had waited for over 33 years to get a gold medal from a competing athlete at the international level and such a huge milestone was worth celebrating. Praises and prizes were showered unto the smiling Inzikuru who inspired other young women athletes that they can also make it in the sports industry.

Inzikuru became an instant sports celebrity in Uganda and even the President gifted her with a house in Arua which she has been living in since 2007. It was all sunshine and rainbows for the long-distance runner until when she started receiving threats that the land on which her house stands is not hers and she needs to secure a land title which she has been chasing from the Ministry of Education and Sports, the Parliament and the Ministry of Lands and Urban Development until now and she’s still not yet successful. Even in her retirement, Inzikuru last got her monthly stipend of Ugx 5 million in 2017 which she had been promised to be getting every month each year.

Inzikuru’s story is a perfect example of how the government urges athletes to work hard but doesn’t fully appreciate and compensate them for all the hard work they invest in training and even after retiring from sports. Uganda has always shown peaks of sporting excellence and as staunch patriots, we have always shown love and support to our national teams that have competed on the international level and as Ugandans, we are very proud. Most of the athletes that represent Uganda are young people who are energetic and have a passion for what they do and they invest countless hours in training trying to make sure that they don’t disappoint their country.

However, the challenge comes in with the tokens of appreciation that these athletes are supposed to receive from the government which can be pending until when they’re forgotten. The next thing you hear is news headlines of sports personalities crying out to the government to build them a house or pay for medical bills and yet as citizens, we think these people are well-off which is not the case.

In the 2022/23 Uganda national budget, Ugx 47.81 billion was allocated to the sports industry meant to fund sports activities such as supporting national teams for international events like the Olympics, commonwealth games, continental championships and the East African community games. Despite all this sum of money invested in sports, you won’t be shocked to find out that sports teams still have inadequate funding, ramshackled training facilities, and poor administrative systems.

You ask yourself where all the money goes, seeing no signs of improvement in the sports sector but the major sports stakeholders will always claim that they’re supporting the sports industry and seeing a bright future of stars. The future is now and yet sports personalities are still earning peanuts as compared to how much time and effort they dedicate to representing their country.

The sports industry just like any other industry in Uganda is a profitable industry which sports personalities can earn an enormous amount of money from and also provide commercial investment opportunities for Uganda. With the right exposure as a result of better administrative systems, major sports personalities can even become brand ambassadors of various brands that support sports not only in Uganda but in other countries as well.

The major sports stakeholders should set policies in place that can lead to the self-sustainability of athletes even when they retire from sports. For instance, the one-off tokens of appreciation may not be sufficient enough but rather setting up high-performance athlete centres can be a great source of employment for retired athletes who can train and educate upcoming athletes while being paid handsomely for it.

It’s high time that sports personalities are recognized in Uganda because they are in a multi-billion industry known all over the world and the government can make it possible for them to reap fruits from it.

Faraja Africa Foundation conducted this year’s first regional Youth Parliament in Masaka district on June 20, 2022, at Muteesa 1 Royal University. The attendance of youth leaders in this region showed eagerness to fully participate in the motions that were to be debated on. All the regional Youth Parliaments were funded by the European Union and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH under the German government.

The Youth Parliament couldn’t proceed without first electing a speaker. The nominees were Zahara Nalubyayi and Festo Kato. After a tight election process, Zahara emerged as the winner with a total of 35 votes defeating Festo Kato who garnered only 14 votes. With the Speaker elected, the house dived straight into its first motion which was “Urging the government to facilitate skills development for young people in order to solve the problem of unemployment.”

The motion caused a heated debate in the house because one of the major issues facing the youth in Uganda today is nothing other than unemployment. As stated by Festo Kato, “Over 40% to 60% of the youth in Uganda are unemployed.” Our education system focuses more on theoretical knowledge and when the youth finally graduate from university, they don’t have the confidence to apply the knowledge they acquired in school. That’s something that the government can look into so that young people can gain more practical skills while in school and be able to apply those skills in the workplace.

Some of the participants who gave in their submissions during the debate claimed that it’s not the government’s problem for the youth to be unemployed. They argued against the motion saying that it’s the youth’s sole responsibility to be job creators rather than job seekers. The youth shouldn’t wait for the government to give them jobs but should instead be proactive enough to use their creativity, talents, and skills to come up with business ideas that can enrich them.

However, other young people in the house supported the motion by saying that government should give them jobs because they pay taxes and the government should use that money to create jobs for them. They went further by saying that due to the current high costs of commodities in the country, the taxes to be paid have increased and yet most of them are still unemployed.

The big question from the youth to the government was, “Where does our money go?” Of course, some of the youth were complaining about how government officials simply use the citizens’ money to enrich themselves. A recent example that was given was the Ugx 40m that was given to Members of Parliament in an economy where the average Ugandan is crying of high commodity prices.

The debate showed how brilliant these young people are and also speaking matters from the heart. We believe that majority of the youth being unemployed in Uganda is part of the government’s responsibility because young people are the leaders of today and tomorrow and if they’re not provided with the necessary skills that can put them in positions of power and curb unemployment, then where is the Pearl of Africa heading to?

 

Faraja Africa Foundation will be hosting the 5^th National Youth Parliament on 5^th August 2022 with support from the Civil Society in Uganda Support Programme which is implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH with funds from the European Union and German government under the Creative Youth Inclusive Policy Engagements and Legislation (CYIPEL) project. This National Youth parliament is a platform for young leaders to express their political, social, and economic views as representatives from the grassroots. This year’s seating is under the theme Intergenerational Solidarity: Creating a world for all Ages.

Faraja Africa Foundation is collaborating with other partners that include, the Parliament of Uganda, the East African Community, ActionAid, Centre for Policy Analysis, Uganda Parliamentary Forum for Youth Affairs, National Youth Council, the Rose Namayanja Foundation, Advance Afrika, Interparty Youth Platform, Uganda National Students Association, Westminster Foundation for Democracy and Restless Development Uganda among other partners.

Faraja Africa Foundation is calling upon the youth to engage themselves in advocating for their inclusion in national policy-making processes and the policy implementation under the National Youth Parliament. The motive behind this seating is to have the youth issues addressed like; poverty, unemployment, and social injustices. The resolutions that are discussed in the National Youth Parliament constitute a petition that is tabled for discussion in the Parliament of Uganda for action and policy implementation.

Therefore, we call upon youth leaders of the National Youth Councils, Student Guild Councils, District Youth Councils, and local councils across the four regions in Uganda to apply for participation in this year’s National Youth Parliament that will take place at the Parliament of Uganda as we use the top-bottom approach to have the voices of the youth echoed at the top.

Application Procedure

Check your eligibility – do you fulfill the following Prerequisite?

A young Ugandan (female or male) between the age of 18 – 30 years as of December 31st, 2022?

Then

1. Complete the application form.
2. Tweet or post on the National Youth Parliament on any of the social media platforms with hashtags #YouthParliamentUG
3. Follow National Youth Parliament and Faraja Africa Foundation; Twitter – @FarajaAfricaFdn | Facebook – Faraja Africa Foundation | Instagram – @farajaafricafdn

(Mention or tag National Youth Parliament and Faraja Africa Foundation in your post or tweet)

 

Deadline: 25th July 2022 at 11:59 pm EAT.

For more information, email info@farajaafricafdn.org

Click the link here to fill out the form: [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1jqpb9BTOMYKMh944uBKOFltS3UjppbmeaR4s9Uc5bRI/edit?usp=sharing]  and follow the instructions to be part of the National Youth Parliament 2022.

For more information, please email info@farajaafricafdn.org

 

As secondary schools were opening up for the second term in early May this year, science teachers around Uganda went on strike deciding not to teach until when the government intervened and increased their salaries just like other scientists which had been the initial plan of the government. This put a lot of pressure on the government because it meant that students wouldn’t be studying and school operations would be disrupted.

To address their problem, His Excellency President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni agreed to increase their salaries by 300% in the national budget 2022/23 and this will be effective starting July 2022. Having been promised the increment, the secondary science teachers who are graduates would be getting Ugx 4m per month but the government said that it would only afford to pay them Ugx 2.2m per month. The diploma science teachers would be getting Ugx 3m but the government said it could only afford to pay them Ugx 1.4m per month.

From the national budget 2022/23, Ugx 95 billion was allocated to the salary increment of science teachers excluding arts teachers. The salary increment angered arts teachers who blamed the government for being unfair and discriminatory. On June 14, barely a week after reading the national budget, The Uganda National Teachers’ Union (Unatu) called the budgetary decision a discriminatory policy that saw more than 100,000 secondary arts teachers going against the government’s decision.

The national chairperson of Unatu, Zadock Tumuhimbise, and the secretary-general Filbert Baguma had a meeting with the president on June 18 at State House but the two parties failed to reach a decision. The president insisted that he was going to first concentrate on the science teachers and the arts teachers would be sorted later on in the next financial year.

President Museveni urged the arts teachers to stop striking and go back to work which angered them the more. The President further instructed the Ministers of Education, Public service, and Finance to look into Unatu’s issue and find a way to handle the arts teachers’ salary push. In 2018, Unatu signed a collective bargaining agreement with the government which stated that all the salaries of teachers would be increased but when the government came up with an innovation strategy that would enhance the salaries of all scientists, science teachers also wanted to be included in that plan which left out the arts teachers.

Filbert Baguma said that the government has all the power to increase the salary of arts teachers and all it has to do is come up with a supplementary budget that caters for arts teachers as well because it would be unfair for an arts teacher teaching in the same secondary school with a science teacher who will be getting more salary than him at the end of the month.

Baguma argued that arts teachers have the same workload and operate in the same working environment as science teachers so it would be unfair for the government to discriminate against them. The country also needs arts people who can become politicians, economists and lawyers to mention but a few and they can also lead to the transformation of the country. Will the government hear the arts teachers’ plea and increase their salaries? That’s a topic that needs to be handled by the people at the top.