Civic Participation & Engagement

Civic Participation & Engagement

Empowering youth in decision-making, policy analysis, civic engagement, advocacy, and leadership.

Projects

YSDC and YH Youth (AGYW) Engagement – DREAMS Project

The organization is providing youth meaningful engagement support in the Young Heroes DREAMS project funded by USAID. The meaningful AGYW engagement component of the project uses a rights-based approach which recognizes AGYW as right holders and also involves them in the planning and delivery to ensure their ideas, issues and concerns are understood and considered in the project. YSDC in that regard, oversees the implementation of AGYW's meaningful engagement component working with DREAMS Ambassadors and Constituency AGYW Representatives and has implemented several activities such as youth engagement baseline assessment, AGYW constituency dialogues, trained DREAMS Ambassadors and representatives on effective youth leadership and engagement and facilitate feedback surveys in the first year of the project. The organization through the above various activities has reached out to 571 AGYW.

Youth Development Forum: Intergenerational Dialogue

Tackling the challenges faced by young people by supporting their empowerment and providing them with an enabling environment for their human development is imperative in laying a foundation for a sustainable future. The purpose of the youth forum is to engage youth voices on critical youth issues in order to address and achieve sustainable development at all levels. The forum further ensures that young people are involved in developing a circular and creative economy where their social and economic needs are met and ensures that they are part of climate action and governance initiatives. It also guarantees that they are engaged in legislative and policy frameworks and further enables spaces for youth engagement and leadership. Moreover, this initiative also fosters intergeneration dialogues in order to improve the contact between different generations in order to achieve understanding and solidarity between them. Additionally, the youth forum seeks to enhance youth participation in building back the future they want where they are fully included in the achievement of sustainable development in Eswatini which is aligned with Agenda 2030 and Agenda 2063.

Community Dialogues on Human Rights

The organization facilitated human rights dialogues in local communities, discussing the importance community members can play in the enjoyment of human rights as human rights holders and understanding the importance of participation in upholding human rights. It is important to empower Emaswati, especially women and youth about their human rights to foster development, civic participation, and full enjoyment of human rights hence the community members were further assisted in developing an action plan for the human rights issues they are faced with.

Advancing Equal Nationality Rights and Ending Statelessness  in the Eswatini

Youth Sustainable Development Centre in partnership with the Global Campaign for Equal Nationality Rights (GCENR) advocates and advances gender-equality national rights and ending statelessness in Eswatini. Through this project, the organization has conducted youth activities on gender discrimination and equal nationality rights, implemented advocacy campaigns that include stakeholder and traditional leaders meetings, community dialogues, social and traditional media sensitization sessions.  The organization has founded partnerships with local and regional key stakeholders on advocacy and capacity-building initiatives. Ending all discrimination against women and girls is not only a basic human right, but it’s also crucial for a sustainable future and the country’s development. The project directly reached out to 1589 stakeholders, leaders, youth and affected persons.