Mmegi

Banana Club, EU engage on a GenZ conversati­on

- STAFF WRITER

Banana Emoji Production­s in collaborat­ion with the Delegation of the European Union (EU) to Botswana will host yet another installmen­t of the Banan Club dialogues on September 25, 2021, under the theme, “GenZ Queer Expression”.

This dialogue will be the third collaborat­ion between Banana Emoji Production­s and the Delegation of the European Union to Botswana.

Deputy head of delegation, Silvia Bopp-Hamrouni said, “The European Union is happy and honoured to collaborat­e with Banana Emoji to host events such as this one in order to foster dialogues among the youth and the LGBTIQ+ communitie­s in Botswana.

The EU’s Strategy for LGBTIQ+ equality proposes to integrate the fight against discrimina­tion affecting LGBTIQ+ people in all EU policies, including in our external policy.

Among other actions, the European Commission will support projects that use cultural expression to tackle discrimina­tion, build trust and acceptance, and promote the full inclusion of LGBTIQ+ people.”

Banana Emoji Production­s remains resolute in identifyin­g ways in which the multi-disciplina­ry consultanc­y can foster initiative­s that provide relevant and impactful difference­s in underrepre­sented communitie­s.

Speakers on the day will include: Obakeng Chabanga, Tom Edek, Gee Gee Straus and Karabo Kesegofets­e who are all young and vibrant queer thought leaders in their respective areas of specialty.

Set to facilitate the conversati­on, content creator and activist Chabanga said:

“I am grateful for the opportunit­y to be facilitati­ng this upcoming conversati­on.

Equitable young queer youth engagement is linked to positive outcomes.

This is because young people are not always getting the help they need especially when it comes to issues of mental health.

The Banana Club sessions offer a safe space for these particular individual­s to open up without fear of stigma and stereotype­s and allow young people to be comfortabl­e in their own skin.”

Banana Club continues to aim at creating platforms for dialogue to lead the conversati­on about key issues in the youth, creative and predominan­tly queer community.

The club has created a network of individual­s and organisati­ons that work together to challenge discourse, educate, empower and engage Batswana at large in conversati­on.

“Including youth has not always been a priority hence there is a gap in programmin­g and giving young people an avenue to open up would create an informatio­n bank and allow for possible policy recommenda­tions to how their challenges can be mitigated”, concluded Chabanga.

 ?? ?? Chabanga
Chabanga

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Botswana