FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 15, 2009
Contact: Kathy Gest, kgest@ndi.org, 202-728-5535
Young Women Meet in Morocco
with Future Leadership in Mind
RABAT – Twenty-five young women from across North Africa will convene in Rabat, Morocco, for leadership exercises over the next four days, hoping to carry the lessons learned back to their communities and into their futures.
The women range from 22 to 34 years old and represent five countries. In addition to learning from each other, they will hear from expert trainers and guest speakers from the United States, Canada, Jordan and Morocco, including Nouzha Skalli, Moroccan minister for social development, family and solidarity.
The event is the first in a year-long program called “Youth of Today, Leaders of Tomorrow” Designed by NDI with support from the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), the program is for young women in North Africa with the interest and drive to become leaders in their communities who can help define future roles for women in political and civic life. “Youth of Today, Leaders of Tomorrow” will include a series of gatherings in Morocco where participants will meet other members of the program, share experiences and learn from accomplished leaders from across the globe.
Sessions will tackle personal and organizational leadership, advocacy work, civic engagement and how to become a voice in the community. Participants will continue discussions and information sharing in between gatherings through online forums and discussions on www.Aswat.com.
Building leadership skills will be the focus of the conference, but the women will come away with something more tangible: a written plan for projects they will implement in their communities. NDI, international experts and regional mentors assigned to each participant will provide technical support and guidance for carrying out the plan over the next year.
The women, selected from a competitive pool of applicants, come from Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia. They represent a range of backgrounds and organizations that includes human rights, education and health groups.
NDI-Morocco will be hosting the program for the next year. The Institute has worked to strengthen democratic institutions in Morocco since 1997. Its programs aim to reinforce civic engagement in the political process,increase the responsiveness of political parties to citizen needs, strengthen representative institutions such as the parliament, and promote the expanded political participation of women and youth.
The National Democratic Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization working to support and strengthen democratic institutions worldwide through citizen participation, openness and accountability in government. More information is available at www.ndi.org.
Event Dates:
June 15-18, 2009
Guests:
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Former Member of Parliament Diane LeBlanc
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Nouzha Skalli, Moroccan Minister for Social Development, Family and Solidarity
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Kinda Hattar, Governance and Public Diplomacy Projects Manager, British Council in Jordan
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Amal Obeidi, Garyounis University in Libya
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Cathy Allen
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Taleb Salhab
