The Charge d’Affaires of the European Union (EU) Delegation to Ghana, Jonas Claes, has stressed the need for cross-party collaboration among young political leaders, saying it is critical to building a stronger democratic culture.

He said young political leaders were the future parliamentarians, politicians, and government members and that engaging with one another early would help them develop collaborative mechanisms for solving problems as they advanced in their careers.

Mr Claes was speaking at the closing workshop of the Women and Youth Democratic Engagement (WYDE) project in Accra.

The EU-funded project was implemented in partnership with the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) Ghana Office and the European Network of Political Foundations (ENoP).

It seeks to strengthen the participation of young people and women in political parties and democratic processes.

Participants

The project brought together young political leaders from the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the governing National Democratic Congress (NDC), as well as student leaders from the Tertiary Education Institution Network (TEIN) of the NDC and Tertiary Students Confederacy Network (TESCON) of the NPP.

The programme was designed to help participants bridge party divides, build lasting relationships, and strengthen their understanding of leadership, communication, and technical writing.

Participants were also trained in drafting parliamentary documents, including policy briefs and proposals.

Cross-party ties

Mr Claes commended the participation of young leaders from different political parties, particularly the NDC and NPP.

He said engaging across party lines from an early stage would strengthen the participants’ ability to collaborate and was an outcome the EU Delegation was keen to support.

The Project Manager at ENoP, Laurenz Van Ginneken, said the investment in young leaders was based on the belief that the youth remained a pivotal group in democratic societies.

He said equipping young people with leadership skills early would benefit not only the participants but also the country as a whole.

Mr Van Ginneken likened the training to a “backpack” that gave young leaders a head start as they developed their careers.

On the friendships forged across party lines during the programme, he said the objective was to encourage participants to sustain those relationships.

“Democracy is a clash of ideas, not a clash of people,” he said.

He said maintaining that spirit of cooperation would benefit Ghana, Africa, and the wider world. 

Skills training

The WYDE Ghana Project Manager at the KAS Ghana Office, Lawrencia Akosua Pomaa, said the cohort also participated in a parliamentary simulation exercise to develop healthy debating skills.

She said the participants also received training in financial resource management, with Members of Parliament serving as mentors.

Ms Pomaa said the various activities were intended to equip the young leaders with practical skills and experience that could strengthen their future participation in public life.