Goal: Boost trans leaders in a field dominated by gays and lesbians
Workshop trains trans Cameroonians for leadership roles
In the struggle for LGBT rights in Cameroon, leading roles have been dominated by gays and lesbians. Transgender Cameroonians much less often have stepped forward as leaders.
A program initiated by RITAC (Independent Transgender Network of Central Africa) seeks to change that shortcoming by training trans people in the techniques of running meetings and organizing capacity-building workshops.
As part of that initiative, RITAC, which is headquartered in Cameroon, recently sponsored a two-day leadership training session in Yaoundé.
Ten leaders of transgender organizations attended the session, which was run by Jean Jacques Dissoke and Silvère Tchomnou, two specialists in training and community capacity building. The training included a discussion of different types of meetings, including meetings organized around an expert’s presentation and meetings with a more participatory approach.
Dissoke commented that transgender people need to take the lead in highlighting their potential and talents in order to be sought after and recognized as experts. At the same time, he said, technical and financial partners must provide means to strengthen transgender leaders so they will have the talents to represent the transgender community effectively.
