Call for Applications: Mediators of Democracy programme

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS FROM THE ARC-CÔTIER & CENTRAL LABORATORY OF THE INNOVATION FOUNDATION FOR DEMOCRACY FOR THE RECRUITMENT OF 12 DEMOCRACY MEDIATORS (06 WOMEN & 06 MEN)

The Arc-Côtier et Central Laboratory of the Innovation Foundation for Democracy is officially launching the second edition of the programme entitled “Les médiateurs de la Démocratie” for the year 2024 – 2025. “The Mediators of Democracy” is a sub-regional training and capacity-building programme for young people (aged 20-35) in democracy, leadership and governance.

• PRESENTATION AND CONTEXT OF THE PROGRAMME

The African political arena over the last few decades has been strongly marked by political conflicts of various kinds (crises of political participation, restrictions on the expression of political freedoms, electoral disputes, post-electoral violence, crises of governance, etc.). The use of mediation as a tool for building a space for civility, discussion, deliberation, consolidation of citizenship, consensus-building and peace can therefore prove very useful in recreating the conditions for political dialogue and civil peace in Africa. In practice, in fact, African democracy needs an army of mediators, i.e. citizens trained in the techniques of dialogue, discussion, deliberation, negotiation, compromise and peaceful conflict management. This is the purpose of this programme, and why it aims to empower politicised African youth (i.e. those interested in politics as an object of study, but above all as a civic activity and republican commitment), in order to build a critical mass of women and men committed to the construction of a political space that is certainly competitive, but sufficiently civilised and peaceful. More generally, this project aims to strengthen the culture of democracy among young African leaders, throughout the territory covered by the Labo Arc-Côtier et Central.

1. ORIGINALITY OF THE PROGRAMME

The originality of this programme lies in the fact that it is aimed at the young politicised African elite, i.e. young women and men who are involved in one way or another in civic, public and political debate, and who aspire to play a role in the political life of their countries, and/or, more specifically, who wish to play a part in pacifying the political scene in their countries, or to win future elective mandates in their localities, communes, departments, regions and nations. It is these young leaders, these committed young people, that the Laboratory should be building into an army of “Mediators” in the service of substantive democracy in Africa.

1. CONDITIONS OF ELIGIBILITY

The launch of the 2025 vintage of the “Ombudsmen for Democracy” programme will take place in March 2025.

The working languages are French and English.

The 2025 vintage will be made up of twelve (12) participants six (06) women and six (06) men) from the countries covered by the Laboratory: Burundi, Cameroun, Congo, Gabon, Guinée Equatoriale, République Centrafricaine, Ouganda, République Démocratique du Congo, Rwanda, Sao Tome et Principe and Chad.

1. Conditions of eligibility

• Be between 25 and 35 years old;
• Be a national of one of the above-mentioned countries and reside in Africa;
• Hold at least a Bachelor’s degree or any other equivalent diploma;
• Have been a member of a political party, association or trade union for at least three (03) years.

“Female candidates are particularly encouraged to apply.

1. Composition of the application file

The application file must include :

• A covering letter ;
• A letter of recommendation from an official of the organisation to which you belong or to which you are attached (association, trade union or political party);
• A detailed CV (including copy of passport, proof of place of residence, copy of Bachelor’s degree) setting out the applicant’s academic, professional and political background;
• A presentation of at least five (05) pages and no more than ten (10) pages of the candidate’s “Mediation and Leadership” project (Document in which the candidate presents his/her vision of social and political commitment, the reasons and justifications for this commitment, and details of the field in which he/she intends to use his/her skills after this training. Example: setting up a political party, trade union or association; drawing up a political proposal to stand in a political election at local, departmental, regional or national level; devising a project to lobby the authorities in support of a cause, a lobbying project to move a project forward, a peace-building proposal to resolve a political, economic, social or cultural problem identified in their community; among others).

Timeline

• • Deadline for applications : 20 January 2025 at 23:00 GMT.
  • Examination of applications and pre-selection : from 22 to 31 January 2025.
  • Interviews with shortlisted candidates: from 5 to 10 February 2025.
  • Announcement of results: 15 February 2025.
  • Official launch of the programme: Mars 2025.

• Applications should be sent using the Google form to the following address [shorturl.at/EPcb1].

• For inquiries, email: [centralafrican.lab@innovationdemocratie.org]

For more information, please visit the website of the Innovation for Democracy Foundation: https://www.innovationdemocratie.org.