Date : March 21 & 22, 2024
Time : 09:00 am to 5:00 pm
Venue : United Hotel, Mbankomo (Register now)

Theme : Practical Leadership and Management of Think Tanks in Central Africa for Effective Impact.

Background

Following an earlier successful 1^st phase of the 2 day in person leadership and advocacy immersion program which took place in Yaounde in July 2023, think tank leaders from the Central African Region will again convey in Yaounde, Cameroon in March 21 and 22, 2024 to strengthen the managerial capacities of think tanks by enhancing their leaders’ leadership skills and consequently enabling positive governance in their respective institutions. This program aims to help think tanks position themselves as legitimate stakeholders, strong advocates and reliable partners on the national and sub-regional policy environment.

For the recall, Central Africa is one of the most volatile regions on the continent where human rights abuses, armed conflicts, and transnational crime contribute to the persistent insecurity of the state and people. Women bear the full brunt of the negative effects of this situation, and remain excluded from implementation and/or decision-making forums. Deepening women’s engagement in conflict resolution, peace-building, justice, and social cohesion processes in ECCAS will provide a significant opportunity to mitigate ongoing conflicts and lay a strong foundation for peace and security in these countries. Even though very little progress has been made in organizing open and fair electoral processes and including youths and women especially in critical decision making spaces, much is yet to be done on the governance aspect. The August 30th 2023 coup in Gabon for example depicts the picture of a region still marred by poor governance and authoritarianism. This is reflected in the blatant confiscation of political power and flawed electoral processes that stifle civil liberties, exacerbate corruption, mismanage state resources, and lack accountability. .

The particularity of think tanks lies in their ability to produce high quality research to inform and orientate public policy, lead in amplifying the voices of key opinion leaders and the civil society through open debates, public events and advocacy campaigns that help to promote the rule of law, respect for fundamental human rights, inclusive and sustainable conflict resolution, amongst many others. Unlike other regions across the continent, the ECCAS region has very few reputable, independent think tanks creating real impact. The Two (2) day in person leadership and advocacy immersion program organized by the Nkafu Policy Institute, a think tank of the Denis and Lenora Foretia Foundation is therefore intended to specifically address all the challenges that limit these think tanks’ ability to adequately defend policies that promote open, democratic and accountable governance with a key focus on strengthening the leadership and managerial aptitudes of these think tanks.

Objectives of the event

The main objective of this two-day in-person leadership and advocacy immersion program is to discuss ways of sustaining the leadership and effective management of think tanks in the Central African Region. More specifically, focus will be on ways to:

• Strengthen themanagerial capacity of think tanks in Central Africa to produce relevant, high-quality research and influence policy.
• Enhance the leadership and research capacity of think tank researchers, particularly women researchers to conduct research and policy advocacy.
• Expand the visibility and reach of think tanks in Central Africa on the continent and worldwide.

Target Audience

The 2-day in-person Leadership and Advocacy Immersion targets leaders of think tanks and independent research centers within the Central Africa Region. Particular emphasis would be placed on supporting women think tank leaders and researchers. 

Event Format

• Theevent will be held IN PERSON in Yaounde (Cameroon)
• The program of this event featureskeynote presentations, panel discussions, B2B meetings between think tank leaders, conversations with policy -makers and networking.
• The event will also consist of plenaries with brainstorming sessions led by Experts and think tank leaders on each of the questions in order to generate and document actionable recommendations.

Selection Process

• The event is open ONLY to think tank leaders and researchers from the ECCAS region.
• Interested participants are invited to express their interest by registering online before February 15, 2024.
• The Foundation will make the selection of participants on a rolling basis, and only successful applicants will be contacted. All those selected will be notified by February 20, 2024.
• Some selected applicants shall receive financial support from the Foundation to attend the workshop. This support includes: payment of registration fees, payment of travel expenses (economy class airfare, Hotel accommodation, ground transportation, etc.) as needed.
• Please note that ALL selected participants are responsible for paying for and obtaining their own visas. The Foundation will not reimburse these costs.
• Sponsored participants will be notified by the Foundation no later thanFebruary 20, 2024 on their support. They will be required to provide proof of their visa before the Foundation begins the logistical process. The deadline for submitting a copy of the visa is February 28, 2024.

Participation fee and Payment

The conference is limited to 25 attendees, providing a prime opportunity for networking. The participation fee is paid only when the registration is approved.

Standard participation fee for think tank leaders	200 $
Special participation fee for researchers	150 $
Special participation fee for participants in last year’s workshop	180 $
Fee for all participants who have missed the payment deadline	300 $

All prices are in US dollars and include VAT.

The participation fee includes:

• Certificate of participation
• Admission to all sessions of the workshop
• A printed copy of all event materials
• Meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner)
• The final event report (electronic version)

Payment
Once selected as a final participant, payment can be made via bank transfer or credit card (VISA, MasterCard, and PayPal). All bank charges and commissions are paid by the participant.  Payment on site is not allowed.

Expected Outcome 

• Increased awareness among think tank leaders and researchers of issues related to women’s rights, accountability, security, and integrated governance within the ECCAS region.
• Enhanced managerial leadership and professionalskills of ECCAS think tank leaders and researchers as evidenced by their lead in advocacy activities towards the promotion of women’s rights, accountability, security, and integrated governance in the ECCAS Region.
• Strengthened capacities of think tank leaders to conduct innovative research leading to relevant recommendations by enhancing their advocacy strategy.

Contact

Email: [email protected] / Tel: (+237) 654 86 72 54

For more information on the agenda and speakers, consult the event page here