After realizing that limited mentorship programmes coupled with a lack of systematic strategies to attract and retain young women to join leadership and participate in governance processes continue to hinder young women’s leadership development, the Rose Namayanja Foundation has come up with ways to redress this challenge by building the self-confidence and political consciousness of young women through mentorship series to unleash their full potential in the deeply entrenched patriarchy system.
Mentoring is an effective way to nurture and achieve advancement in the transformation of society. Therefore, young women who have gone through mentoring usually advance faster, are more productive and are better accustomed to navigating the complexities of the environment they operate in. Hence it is through mentorship that women leaders can be attracted, retained and groomed to participate and influence governance and decision-making processes. While there is a lot of informal mentorships, it can sometimes be hard for women to tap into these programmes, especially within male-dominated spaces. Women can easily find themselves adrift, trying their best to advance but bereft of effective support.
Training, exposure and mentorship of women leaders and those aspiring have led to women leaders becoming more visible and politically effective. It is through these young women leaders’ mentorship series that one gain confidence and skills enabling them to influence, build solidarity and lead successful change efforts with tangible results at various levels of leadership.
Under the Young Women leaders Mentorship Programme, Rose Namayanja Foundation seeks to bridge the gender inequality gap for women in governance and strengthen the women movement by enhancing their voice rooted in feminist ideologies of sisterhood.
The transformational leadership training for young women leaders pairs the emerging leaders with seasoned women leaders in the Uganda Women’s Movement to guide them along their leadership journeys as part of a set of activities to blend the process of their leadership growth.
The training targets young women in their diversities with demonstrable leadership qualities and interest in advancing women’s rights to strengthen their feminist and transformational leadership capacities to effectively participate in leadership and decision making.
