East African Community Youth Policy

Posted in Gender, Community Development & Civil Society

The fact that the youth constitute the largest segment of the population in all Partner States, makes them a critical section of society to forge forward the EAC integration agenda. Therefore, the overall objective of the Youth Policy is to guide the East African Community on the planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of programmes to address youth issues in the region while assuring sustainable social, economic and political development.

The policy prescribes strategic priority areas and actions to guide the implementation and address youth challenges. It also articulates the need for harmonising definitions of the youth, related legislation and programmes carried out across the region.

Youth

Posted in Gender, Community Development & Civil Society

The Community’s greatest asset is its human resources, full mobilisation and effective involvement of all East Africans, men, women and youth for national development and social progress, should be a major instrument of development. In this context, the youth, who constitute the largest segment of the population in the EAC, should be accorded proportionate recognition and participation in all national and regional development activities.

The Youth is EAC’s future. It is therefore necessary to ensure the active and effective representation of the Youth in the society as well as in the national and regional integration processes, in order to express their views and interests. The EAC has a Sectoral Council on youth, children, gender and community development which among others is responsible for mainstreaming cross-cutting issues, including youth in EAC policies and programmes.

Upon recommendations of the Sectoral Council, an EAC Youth Policy was adopted in August 2013 in order to provide a binding framework for effective implementation, monitoring and evaluation of youth programmes and projects. It also provides clear strategies in the sector, and a strategic plan which takes into account youth issues.

Mainstreaming youth in EAC programmes aims at:

• formulating a harmonised comprehensive regional policy that provides a binding framework for effective implementation, monitoring and evaluation of youth programmes and projects;
• empowering the Youth so that they can fully participate and benefit from the regional economic, social and political integration;
• establishing a regional mechanism that will promote and sustain youth culture, values, morals and ethics; and,
• implementing mechanisms outlined in the youth policy.

The EAC Secretariat is working towards:

• Establishment of an East Africa Community Youth Council to mainstream youth issues in all development policies and programmes;
• The EAC Gender and Community Development Department is currently negotiating with development partners for support of a Youth Exchange Programme for sharing new opportunities and best practices in business and technology;
• Empowering the Youth so that they can fully participate and benefit from the regional economic, social and political integration;
• Establishment of a regional mechanism that will promote and sustain youth culture, values, morals and ethics;
• EAC in collaboration with the International Labour Organization is in a process of developing and exchange program for young workers within the EAC Partner States; and,
• Availing opportunities for the youth to directly participate in the EAC activities through internships, short consultancies, research, etc. at the EAC and EALA headquarters.

Avenues of engagement with Women and Men

Posted in Gender, Community Development & Civil Society

EAC Conferences on Women in Socio-economic development and Women in Business

The Community through the East African Customs Union and Common Market integration phases have opened up borders and unlocked opportunities for East Africans to freely move across the borders as persons or workers, and to establish themselves as self-employed persons and traders in agreed upon service sectors in the Partner States. As such, through the EAC Gender and Community Development Strategic Plan (2012-2014), the 4th EAC Development Strategy (2011/12-2015/16), the participation of women in business, trade and investment has been prioritised by Partner States as a vital path to equitable socio economic development.

In view of the above rationale, the EAC regularly organises conferences to review and discuss the role of women in business and in the socio-economic development of the region. The first conference under the theme, “Unlocking Business Opportunities for Women within an EAC Common Market” was held on 5th-6th August 2011 in Kigali, Rwanda. The second conference under the theme “advancing and expanding the participation of business women in Intra-EAC trade” was held in in Nairobi, Kenya from 20th-21st August 2015.

The conferences are organised in collaboration with the East African Business Council and the host Partner States. The conferences bring together participants from all EAC Partner States including representatives of the Partner States Ministries responsible for EAC Affairs, Trade, and Gender and Development; Women entrepreneurs from the region and beyond; EABC Representatives; Civil Society Organisations and observers.

There were also representatives of Women Entrepreneurs from the Republic of South Sudan. The Conference made several recommendations to be incorporated in the ongoing EAC programmes on promoting women in socio-economic development.

As a result of the conferences, a database of Women Entrepreneurs has been developed and a network of business women in the region called the “East African Women in Business Platform” has been formed. Sources of affordable financing for women in business have also been identified and projects initiated.

Projects to Promote Participation of Women in Business, Trade and Investment

• Regional Financial Facility to be developed in collaboration with the East African Development Bank (EADB). This will target women-owned businesses and aim at reducing the risk of loans extended to women-owned businesses, limit transaction costs as well as guarantee payment in case of default.
• A Regional Strategy for Promoting Women in Business for Socio-Economic Development has been developed.

The Vision of the Strategy is “a Region in which women enjoy economic, social, and political rights and are empowered to secure better lives for themselves, their families, and their communities”.

The Mission of the Strategy is to “increase the number of women engaging in viable and value adding economic activities; and also, capable of equitably contributing to the socio-economic development of the Region”.

Celebrating of the International Women’s Day

Every 8th of March, the EAC joins the rest of the world to celebrate the International Women's Day. This is to honour our mothers, sisters, daughters, friends, colleagues and all the ladies who have inspired, paved the way and given hope to so many of us; the true pillars of the region.

An EAC Women’s website was developed to popularise this day and as a constant avenue of interaction, providing tailored information on women, gender and the other achievements and successes made by women.

Gender Mainstreaming Documents

Posted in Gender, Community Development & Civil Society

1. Participatory Gender Audit Report for EAC Organs and Institutions, 2013
   • A gender audit is a self-evaluation exercise whose main objective is to promote organisational learning on how to implement gender mainstreaming effectively in policies, programmes, and structures. The EAC Secretariat therefore commissioned the Participatory Gender Audit (PGA) to support the on-going efforts in integrating gender-mainstreaming approaches in its institutional processes.
   • Within the EAC context, the Gender Audit assessed the extent to which gender-mainstreaming approaches are implemented through key regional legal and policy frameworks, decision-making processes and institutions. This is in addition to an adopted focus of assessing the potential of effecting strengthened gender equality approaches within EAC through the EAC Partnership Fund processes.
2. EAC Framework for Gender and Social Development Outcome Indicators for EAC Development Strategy (2011-2016)
   • This is the Monitoring and Evaluation Tool for Gender and social development for the 4th EAC Development Strategy (2011-2016). The Framework was formulated as a result of the Participatory Gender Audit for EAC, which revealed several gaps in relation to monitoring gender and other cross-cutting issues in implementing protocols, policies and programs at EAC. It, therefore, aims to guide efforts from different Directorates and Departments towards monitoring gender and social development mainstreaming results at different levels.
3. Guidelines and Checklists for Gender Mainstreaming in EAC Organs and Institutions, 2013
   • This is a manual that provides three basic tools to guide EAC program staff at the Secretariat and key stakeholders at different levels for effective mainstreaming of gender in regional programs and projects during planning, designing, implementing, monitoring and evaluation. The tools are meant to assist them to become active agents for ensuring effective gender analysis and mainstreaming of gender in EAC program interventions in the region.
4. Gender Mainstreaming Strategy for EAC Organs and Institutions, 2013
   • The Gender Mainstreaming Strategy for EAC was the result of a PGA that was conducted by EAC Secretariat in the Focal Ministries in Partner States, organs, institutions and governance structures in the region. The PGA exercise revealed some positive achievements as well as areas in need of improvement in promotion of gender mainstreaming approaches within the EAC context, especially at the Secretariat and Focal Ministries. Within that context, therefore, the strategy was developed with a goal of facilitating the promotion of more effective gender mainstreaming approaches within EAC.