Youth & Elections in Africa Dialogue Series Essay Writing Competition

The essay writing competition as part of the Youth and Elections in Africa Dialogue Series is an opportunity for you to reflect, delve deeper, bringing fresh insights and perspectives on the real issues surrounding African elections in 2024 and beyond.

It aims to encourage critical thinking and empower young voices to share perspectives on the role of social media, combating misinformation, and promoting female representation in elections.

Themes

• Participants are required to choose from one of the following themes, and be creative with the title and content of their Essays:
  • Internet Culture in Shaping Digital Social Halls for Youth Engagement in Elections in Africa:
    • Discuss African governments’ readiness to promote online space tools for civic discourse and public participation in Africa.
    • Discuss challenges on all forms of content governance and moderation and surveillance in digital social halls and how to address these in an ever-changing digital world.
  • Social Media in Shaping Youth Engagement in Elections
    • Discuss how platforms like Instagram, X, and TikTok are influencing youth voter turnout, youth leadership and political advocacy.
  • Combating Mis/Disinformation
    • Explore the impact of misinformation on elections and propose strategies young people can employ to combat fake news and deep fakes.
  • On Intersectional Representation in African Elections
    • Analyze the current state of female representation in African politics, discuss the barriers women face in the electoral process, with recommendations.

Prize Information

• First three winners of the essay competition will receive the following:
  • Cash prize
    • 1st Prize – $300
    • 2nd Prize – $200
    • 3rd Prize – $100
  • Certificate of recognition
  • Publication of essays on Policy’s Medium with credit given to the author.

Eligibility Criteria

• Open to young Africans aged 18-30.

Evaluation Criteria

• Entries will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
  • Originality and Creativity: Uniqueness of ideas and the creative approach to presenting them. Essays must be original works and should not have been previously published. Plagiarism and AI generated essays will automatically result in disqualification.
  • Relevance: The extent to which the blog addresses the outlined themes.
  • Potential Impact: The anticipated impact of the content on the audience and wider community.

Application Requirements

• Word Count: Essays should be between 800 – 1,000 words
• Language: The essay must be written in English or Swahili
• Title Page: Include a title page with the following information:
  • Title of the essay
  • Your full name
  • Age
  • Country of residence
  • Contact information (email and phone number)

For more information, visit Pollicy.