First Youth Forum of the Democrat Union of Africa

About 30 participants worked and discussed intensively their contribution to the development of democratic and prosperous societies in their respective countries. The regional office in Abidjan of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung and the DUA organised this three-day workshop to give young politicians of African center-right parties the opportunity to network and formulate a common political vision.  The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung wants to support the work of the DUA and provide a dialogue platform for a new generation of political leaders. Beyond exchanges and discussions on core questions, the event was intended to establish the structure of the DUA.

The DUA was created in 1997 in Dakar/Senegal and is a sub-organisation of the International Democrat Union (IDU). The IDU and the DUA bring together conservative and Christian parties to network and exchange political ideas and visions. Together they have organised a working meeting in Accra/Ghana in February 2019 to modernise the DUA and develop it further. An important building block on this path is the promotion of young political leaders of the DUA.

After the opening speeches by Edwige Wassa, DUA delegate for youth and francophone issues, Brahima Kamagaté, Secretary for Youth of the PDCI-RDA (Côte d'Ivoire) and Florian Karner, Country Representative of the KAS Regional Programme for Political Dialogue in West Africa, the participants received an introduction to the political ideology of conservative center-right parties and their differentiation from other political party families by Prof. Bedia Aka and Dr. Flan Moquet. What is a political ideology, especially a center-right one? Can political ideologies such as conservatism and liberalism also exist in African politics? What values unite us within the DUA? How can they be adapted and broken down into political policies? How do we act in the field of tension between the striving for power and ideology? This is a selection of questions that have been discussed and that concern young DUA members.

Following these fundamental questions, the DUA youth were able to discuss specific political issues in two panels. The topics of youth unemployment and migration which are both serious threats for many African states were discussed. The second panel dealt with youth entrepreneurship which has to overcome many obstacles in Africa. The participants agreed that the African continent loses enormous potential as young people migrate due to a lack of perspectives and an appropriate framework set by governments. In addition, they noted the lack of coherence between the educational offer for young people and the demand from employers which causes a misfit and aggravates the situation of young people. In addition, a participant from Mozambique stressed that "Entrepreneurship is not only relevant in the business world since innovation and inventiveness are also in demand in politics. This should not be overlooked". In a third part of the event, the participants were given the opportunity to work with a moderator on their networking and rhetorical skills. The KAS hopes that this first forum will provide a platform for the DUA youth to initiate a sustainable development of the organisation.