University and Youth females over the weekend dominated the 1st ever three-day Annual Uganda Women’s Debate open that took place at the ADB building, Makerere University Business School (MUBS). The debate took place from the 6th to the 8th March 2020 an event whose deadline was set to coincide with the International Women’s Day celebrations.
The debate called “Elle Parle Women’s Open 2020” has been described by one of the organizers of the event, Paula Mbanza, a 3rd year law student at Uganda Christian University (UCU) as the “the first ever women’s tournament in Uganda and the second in East Africa”. A similar concept for the opens started in Kenya last year. Other regions with the women’s opens are West Africa, South Africa, making East Africa the third with representation from two countries (the other being Kenya)
“Debate spaces all over the world do not have enough female debaters especially here in Uganda” she adds giving justification why the debate was started in Uganda whose intention is to “increase the number of women in the debate spaces”.
The tournament was an open debate where participants were from in university or individual capacities.
Represented at the debate were female debate diehards from about 11 universities including Makerere University (MUK), KYU, Bishop Stuart University, UCU (Kampala and Mukono campuses), Lira University, Cavendish University, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, MUBS and Gulu University.
You might have noticed a few masculine trousers in the photos from a few lads from those universities and beyond who thought they should make their appearances known in order to support the female debaters in the advocacy for the equality of sexes. The Open was under the theme “I Am Generation Equality”.
A handful of the female debaters were recent graduates.
The final rounds of the debate took place on women’s day in the presence of feminist Hon. Maria Matembe, the guest of honour, who also presented the Maria Matembe Award for the best public speaker.
She also urged the females never to forget where the struggle for women emancipation came from and also cited the 1.5 point increment to the females before admission to government universities.
The inaugural winner of the debate was KYU which was represented by Atuhaire Sharon and Konso Racheal, the 1st and 2nd runners up came from UCU Kampala Asiimwe Marie Patience and Kabasinguzi Martha, and Adikin Mary and Catherine Katushabe respectively.
The best speaker was Ruth Kitamirike from Makerere University.
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