individual-stories
Contesting for in an election is a risky undertaking because in most cases, one never knows the outcome until after the votes have been counted. It involves spending money on publicity and other operational costs. Caroline was aware of this risky and expensive undertaking but she contested anyway, because believed she had what it took to win.
Today, she is the Secretary for Female Affairs at the National Youth Council of Uganda- NYC. She believes in participatory leadership in which the leader is accountable to the led. In her bid to secure a position on the NYC, Caroline discovered that the process was highly monetized with massive interference by individuals from the ruling party-National Resistance Movement.
“There was less objectivity or no free voice campaigns; politics in Uganda is highly commercialized, and for young women like us who don’t have money to dish out, winning is almost impossible. At that point, it was only my public speaking skills alongside my interpersonal skills and God’s grace that made me go through.”
She is grateful to her mentors and her participation in community dialogues which widened her understanding of survival in different situations. She learnt mobilization skills, how to influence people through sincere speaking, campaign strategies and above all, pitching your idea to people with diverse backgrounds, different levels of education and different sex.
In addition to performing her duties at the Youth Council, Caroline engages young women in focus group discussions countrywide during which she shares solutions and responses to the common challenges they face. She is committed to promoting the United Nations Sustainable Goal number 5 of Gender Equality through mentoring more young women to lead. She encourages them to form networks and support each other because “one who walks alone goes very fast yet one who walks with others goes very far.”
