ESLIEN Tsuses (26), a young leader and past member of the Young African Leaders Initiative (Yali), has been chosen to participate in the Community Engagement Exchange (CEE) programme in the United States this year.
The CEE programme, which kicks off on 17 April (today) is an annual global network of young innovators that collaborates with different communities to address pressing issues of the 21st century. Its goal is to empower civil society leaders between the ages of 21 and 28 to use networks, relationships and information for the common good.
Tsuses holds an honours degree in public management and is passionate about helping other young people discover their passions and aspirations, while providing the support they need to pursue them successfully.
She gained experience volunteering with the Ministry of Information Communication Technology and the Namibia Red Cross Society at the Okombahe Multi-Purpose Community Centre.
She also worked as a project manager for a non-profit organisation, I am the Key Children Media, which uses child-participatory techniques to involve kids in Namibia’s socio-economic development.
Her selection as a finalist for the CEE programme says a lot about the exceptional work and interests she has demonstrated as a local leader.
According to Tsuses, “This programme addresses topics related to civic dialogue and peacebuilding, open and participatory government, women’s issues, gender equality, resilience and sustainable development, and youth engagement.”
According to the programme’s website, it also offers a transformational leadership development experience and equips the youth with the knowledge, abilities and resources necessary to create multi-sector strategies and create thriving, engaged communities in more than 100 nations.
Tsuses will take part in a three-month practicum in which she will be paired with a civil society group that offers a practical professional practicum with assigned supervisors and peer support.
“I will design and prepare a project for community involvement to be carried out in my home towns with the assistance of their (US) host organisation and mentors.
“I was accepted for the programme in June last year, and the process since then has been very rewarding, but busy,” Tsuses says.
Tsuses says her desire for a healthy, equitable society is what inspired her to apply for the CEE programme.
She said a society can only grow if its members have the same goal and are motivated to work towards that vision. Strong leadership characteristics are also crucial for the fostering of social development, in her opinion.
Tsuses aspires to empower communities so that together they can address social issues. She wants to help communities transition from a needs-based approach, in which experts from outside the community give interventions, to an “asset-based” approach, which emphasises using local strengths, expertise, and skills to form solutions.
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