28 Jun 2021

Men and Boys for Gender Equality (MBGE) has launched Lighthouse project aimed at identifying strategies to preserve communities and their cultural heritage as well as close the gap in the educational system.

The organisation has partnered with organisations from seven countries namely; Bulgaria, Romania, France, Madagascar, Nigeria, Botswana and Italy for the project.

Speaking during the launch of the project, the president of Monomyths Association from Romania, Ms Emilia Radu noted the project would be implemented in July this year until next year July.

She said the project was co-funded through the Erasmus Plus Programme of the European Commission, adding that during the project, a number of educators, youth workers and trainers would be engaged to guide more than 500 female youth from the seven countries.

She said identified youth would be expected to prototype their cultural start up.

“There is a need to understand, cherish and celebrate our cultural heritage since it represents the richness and diversity of traditions, it helps to forge the way ahead and design the future.

One of the challenges faced is digital generation and they are slowly losing contacts with roots, identification and tradition,” she said.

The project, she said, was an opportunity to reconnect the young with their heritage so as to promote cultural practices.

Ms Radu noted that during learning mobility, youth and educators from the consortium organisations would acquire educational tools to offer guidance to the engaged youth.

She further said strategies on preserving cultural heritage would be implemented through entrepreneurial initiatives, as well as current opportunities for empowerment, learning and mentoring.

The first phase of the project, she said would entail three international training courses, categorised as; the explorer, incubator and accelerator.

The project will end with a two-day simultaneous cultural challenge task to test all that was acquired during the project. Ends