Girls Assemble, a gender and political development programme, which yearns for the participation of Guyanese girls in their country’s politics, has been launched by the Imperial House.
The programme was launched on October 15 to commemorate International Day of the Girl Child, which was celebrated on October 11 and saw 66 young women of Guyanese descent applying to get involved in the programme.
Girls Assemble was inspired by Pink Parliament, an initiative of Life in Leggings: Caribbean Alliance Against Gender-based Violence under the mission, “to increase women’s participation in politics through the empowerment of girls.” The launch was done in the format of a roundtable discussion on “The Power of the Girl: Our Time is Now – Our Rights, Our Equal Future.”
Nine of the participants, who had previously been contestants in the Miss Guyana Teen Scholarship Programme, shared their thoughts on some of the social issues which are affecting young women on a daily basis. Some of these included, education access, literacy, violence in the home and schools, and the rights and equality of girls and children.
According to a release from Girls Assemble, only 35% of the National Assembly of Guyana is made up of women, with little representation and inclusion of gender diversity, persons with disabilities, migrants, and other vulnerable populations.
“We are working on a programme for girls that will feature interactive learning sessions with youth parliamentarians, networking and engaging with national parliamentarians, and skills development and experience in debating topics relevant to the place and issues of girls and women in Guyanese society. Our goal is to enhance the interests and skills of girls and young women in political participation,” the release said.
As such, the programme’s objectives include learning about Guyana’s electoral process and parliamentary system to create opportunities to meet women of the National Assembly. The girls will also learn how motions are passed, bills are debated and become acts of law. They will be engaged in political lobbying for social change, and will learn and improve critical reading, writing, public speaking, and debating skills.
Applications were opened for women between the ages of 15 to 40 years from October 15 to October 31 and of the 66 women who applied, 41.9% were identified as indigenous, rural, or having a disability. One applicant was a migrant from St Lucia, and another was identified as a gender and/or sexual minority.
With these women now gearing up to take on the important role of equality in Guyana’s parliament, orientation and registration are set for November 12. Some of the activities will include sessions on Parliament etiquette, speech writing, public speaking, political lobbying, and debating, facilitated by former members of the National Youth Parliament. There will also be sessions on Parliament procedures, talks delivered by women Members of Parliament, civil society, government, and non-government organisations. They will have the opportunity to tour the Public Buildings and will be able to sit and debate a bill that is of necessity on March 8, 2023, International Women’s Day.
Social Development Director of the Imperial House Jairo Rodrigues leads this programme along with Executive Director Wasim Khan, Finance and Operation Director Cindy Khan and Media and Public Relations Director Feliz Robertson.
