Gender Equality Nepal Project #32055

Girls Wanna Run! Training Nepal's Generation Next!

by Women LEAD

Project Report | Mar 8, 2022
YWPLI Fellows go on a field trip!

By Kabita Tamang | Program and Government Affairs Coordinator

YWPLI team with Deputy Mayor, Ms. Durga

Women LEAD’s Young Women’s Political Leadership Institute (YWPLI), an intensive, eleven-month program aims for the political empowerment of young Nepali women, achieving gender equality through strengthening the knowledge of political leadership, enabling their capacity to work as an active mediator of social change and politics.

One of the core modules of YWPLI is the field trip which provides our Fellows a-week long field visit experience with local representatives/ Mayors out of the valley. The aim of the field trip is to provide the Fellows hands-on learning opportunities from local women representatives/leaders, Mayor, and Deputy Mayor outside Kathmandu valley during their field trip.

YWPLI Programs team organized a week-long field trip (12th Dec-17th Dec 2021) for the 2020 YWPLI and 2021 YWPLI Fellows to explore the geographical political aspects by visiting two municipalities of the Province 1 of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal. The purpose of the visits to municipalities: Damak Municipality and Suryodaya Municipality would enable participants to observe the development happening in the region by themselves, interview local leaders, politicians and explore much about the differences of the leadership in their hometown, Kathmandu, learn the role of youths and women in a political sphere to have a better governing system.

The fellows met the local government heads from both Suryodaya municipality and Damak municipality (Province 1). The discussion with the local government heads highlighted their challenging journey to mainstream politics, changes they have been able to bring in during their tenures were very inspirational to the fellows. Similarly, through the panel discussions with the female politicians, the fellows got to interact with women leaders at the local level. The fellows also got an opportunity to visit the Bhutanese refugee camp in Damak Municipality which fostered discussion on how Geopolitics affects national politics, the rights of citizens and refugees, the role of foreign policy.

Hear from some of our Fellows about their experience:

“The seven days of the YWPLI Field Trip was a very fulfilling experience and a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. My knowledge about democratic processes has widened and I gained more insights on local level politics and women in politics from the eastern side of the country. This has further ignited the passion in me to make a change and taken me a step closer to mainstream politics.” - Mega, 2020 YWPLI Fellow

“One of the special parts of this field trip was an opportunity to understand the works done by female leaders by getting a chance to closely converse with them and to understand the challenges and struggles they face while they work to prosper their communities and nation as a whole. Furthermore, it also provided us with the opportunity to go in the field, talk with the people who live in the vicinity and to learn the true picture of the issues faced by women in the society.” - Simrika, 2020 YWPLI Fellow

“For someone who has lived in Kathmandu all her life, this field trip was an eye-opener. Not only was this my first visit to Illam and Damak but my first attempt at analyzing the political scenario of a place that was not Kathmandu. My interactions with the local female political leaders have had a profound impact on me and have left me with a zeal to be an active member of my community. I am sure that the lessons from this field trip will be monumental if and when I decide to pursue a political career.” - Swastika, 2020 YWPLI Fellow

Fellows with women leaders in Ilam

Links:

Check out Women LEAD's website.

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Nov 8, 2021
Hear from our 2021 YWPLI Fellows!

By Kajal Maharjan | Program (YWPLI) Trainee

Kajal, Program Trainee

Women LEAD virtually welcomed 20 fellows for the 4th iteration of its 2021 Young Women's Political Leadership Institute(YWPLI) on 16th August. The 20 fellows were selected among 130+ applicants following a rigorous selection process. After the successful completion of the 2-week-long Politics Institute, fellows are now preparing for the field trip as a part of their fellowship.

Let's hear from some of our YWPLI fellows about their journey so far:

"My Experience at the Young Women Political Leadership Institute has been mesmerizing and encouraging so far. I've learned so many things about feminist ideologies, struggles, and political journeys of women politicians but the system of supressing women in political participation caught most of my attention. What I experience is hope, the realization of how important our speech and participation are." - Sashi, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

"Getting selected in YWPLI itself was a dream come true moment for me because I knew from the beginning this was going to be the starting point of many beautiful journeys ahead. And it's been months since the enrollment, and the experience so far has been nothing but super amazing; be it meeting with active political members from various political backgrounds, be it learning different political ideologies, or be it listening to their life experiences. Joining YWPLI was indeed the best decision as I know there is yet more to come. Never been so much proud to be a part of like-minded and empowered women. Thanks a bunch to Women LEAD - Pratisha, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

"One of the major things that piqued my interest to join WLEAD is the umbrella community it offers you of amazing women from different backgrounds. One of the many things I'm really grateful for is how supportive the fellows are of each other when it comes to important causes" -Bibhu, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

"Women LEAD has been a great platform of self-discovery. Here, I learned and unlearned many things. I understood the importance of debate, yes I did. I realized how important it is to listen to people’s opinion and analyze it. Maybe everything you are made to believe is not right. I learned to think !" -Krispi, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

"My experience at WLEAD has been nothing short of incredible. The Politics Institute under Women LEAD’s Young Women Political Leadership Institute (YWPLI) has helped me pay attention to what goes around in the political atmosphere from a closer lens. I joined YWPLI with the enthusiasm to find a way to make a meaningful contribution to the community, especially in relation to political leadership. A primary learning, and perhaps the most important one, from the Politics Institute, has been the realization that the foremost change must happen at the grassroots levels and that begins with awareness. I have learned a great deal about politics, not just from the trainers but from my fellow counterparts as well. They inspire me to do better, learn more, listen more, and speak out more, every day. The Politics Institute has been a qualitative exercise, a pointing compass to gain direction at the bigger political aspirations. It has made me understand that politics does not happen in the Parliament, it happens in the streets, inside houses, at tea shops, in schools, and in universities. I have learned that Political Leadership fosters when there exists a state of awareness and when decision-making is positively influenced by such awareness." - Diksha, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

Stay tuned for more updates from our 2021 YWPLI in the upcoming months!

Sashi, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

Pratisha, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

Bibhu, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

Krispi, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

Diksha, 2021 YWPLI Fellow

Links:

Check out Women LEAD's website.

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Jul 9, 2021
2020 YWPLI Fellows Graduate!

By Shreya Khadka | Development Trainee

2020 YWPLI Virtual Graduation Ceremony!

Women LEAD’s Young Women’s Political Leadership Institute (YWPLI), an 11-month long course, aims to equip politically ambitious young Nepali women (19-25years old) with the fundamental knowledge, communication and analytical skills, professional experience, and networks they need to engage in Nepal’s politics in a meaningful way.

Despite the pandemic, the 3rd iteration of Young Women's Political Leadership Institute (YWPLI) kicked off virtually in July 2020 with 20 young women (aged 18-25). Owing to the pandemic, most components of the 11-month program were conducted virtually. Throughout the program, our YWPLI Fellows participated in various program components such as - two-week-long Politics Institute, internship at local or government agency under women leaders, advocacy week, and (not limited to) professional development week.

As a part of the program, our 2020 YWPLI Fellows (in groups of 4-5), conducted their own advocacy projects virtually between April and May 2021. The fellows participated in a week-long advocacy training which helped them identify problem statements and design their own projects.

This year there were four advocacy projects with themes and project objectives such as - creating a platform for meaningful and healthy debate/discussion on gender equality among people aged 16-40, a campaign that encompassed a photo exhibition, and a panel discussion that aimed to address the struggles faced by domestic violence survivors in Nepal and explore their narratives through their lens, economic empowerment at the local level and forming a mini-library accessible to the children from a rural municipality.

On May 29, 19 YWPLI Fellows graduated from the 11-month long Young Women’s Political Leadership Institute (YWPLI) after successfully completing all the components of the program. The event was conducted virtually keeping in mind the ongoing pandemic.

Priyanka, one of our 2020 YWPLI Fellows says, "Initially I used to dream of becoming the deputy mayor of my municipality but now as a YWPLI'20 Fellow, I aspire to be the Mayor of my municipality".

Our 19 2020 Fellows are now a part of our alumni community and will receive ongoing professional opportunities as they move ahead in their leadership journeys.

Snap from 2020 YWPLI Virtual Graduation Ceremony!

Links:

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