Examining the nexus between youth empowerment, inclusion and peacebuilding agenda in Kasese District, Uganda

Abstract

Youth empowerment and inclusion are central themes of the world development agenda. This study examined the nexus between youth empowerment, inclusion and peacebuilding agenda. Previous studies including article 17 of the UN Charter have elaborated on the role of building capacity of young people and youth organizations through promotion of intercultural, interreligious learning, civic education, human rights education, promotion of democracy and mutual respect for cultural, ethnic and religious diversity. However, little effort has been put to link youth empowerment, inclusion and peacebuilding agenda. This study used qualitative research approach with an exploratory case study design to get meanings from experiences of the 24 participants including district youth leaders, local leaders, cultural leaders, religious leaders, and youth from the local communities, who were purposefully sampled. The researcher administered interviews included „Erihanura‟ (Storytelling) and Key informant interviews. Using both thematic and narrative analyses, the findings of the study reveal that participants held diverse definitions of empowerment which is viewed and understood in multiple ways originating from the social, economic, cultural, political, conditions in which the participants live. Fieldwork findings indicate that there is substantial impact of youth empowerment initiatives and inclusion efforts on changing youth perceptions on development and peacebuilding agenda. The study findings further indicate that challenges encountered by youth empowerment and inclusion interventions do undermine the efforts of the government, NGOs and other institutions concerned with empowering the youth to participate in peacebuilding initiatives. Conclusively, the study highlights the importance of youth empowerment and inclusion into peacebuilding agenda by specifically underscoring the role of youth inclusion into peacebuilding as a direct intervention that has not been previously pursued by many NGOs as well as the government.