BUJUMBURA October 12th (ABP) – On the occasion of the International Day of the Girl, 2021 edition, the association for progressive African youth (AJAP), is organizing from October 11 to 13, 2021 in Bujumbura, a workshop to strengthen capacities for the provincial networks of women and girls’ human rights defenders on “mechanisms for peaceful conflict resolution, the fight against corruption and community resilience.”
On this occasion, the international representative of AJAP, Eric Nsengimana, first congratulated the government of Burundi for all the efforts aimed at including women in the management of the country’s affairs. He cited the laws and policies established in their favor, the project to set up a bank for investment and the development of women, the representation of women in decision-making bodies, free basic education which has enabled Burundi to improve parity between men and women and others. Mr. Nsengimana pointed out that the role of women and girls in strengthening peace and security as well as in the development of the country in general is essential. He specified that their efforts have been decisive in the construction and restoration of the social fabric, the fight against corruption, the consolidation of peace and social cohesion as well as the promotion and protection of human rights.
As the world celebrates International Day of the Girl, the international representative of AJAP praised the step already taken by the government of Burundi in the promotion of women’s rights. He specified the establishment of a law protecting women and girls, girls attend school on the same basis as boys, the participation of girls in different sectors of national life including the army, the police, journalism and others.
Despite the progress already made in the promotion of women and girls, the representative of AJAP indicated that there are certain challenges related to their empowerment and sometimes to the way in which Burundian society considers them, from where the need for capacity building to teach them how to deal with violations of laws protecting women and girls. On the basis of the aforementioned themes, AJAP expects from the participants in the said training, a development of a critical mind, innovation and creativity so that at the end of this workshop they will have acquired mastery of the mechanisms of peaceful resolution of conflicts, the fight against corruption as well as new strategies for the defense of human rights and capacity for resilience in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.