Tournons La Page Benin (TLP-Benin) and the Social Universities of Togo (UST) brought Cotonou (Benin) to life on Saturday, July 19, 2025, for the second edition of the Citizenship Fair. The event gathered young civil society actors from Togo, Burkina Faso, and Niger around the theme: “Citizen participation and local governance: what challenges for sustainable and inclusive development?”.

The opening ceremony was chaired by Elias Behanzin, national coordinator of TLP-Benin, and Simplice Gaou, project manager at UST. The program included collective reflections, experience sharing, and thematic panels.

Democracy and citizen participation

The first panel, titled “Youth and Participatory Democracy in Africa,” was moderated by journalist Virgile Houessou and consultant Charlotte Ezebada, a specialist in women’s political participation.
According to Virgile Houessou, “participatory democracy is the expression of a citizen’s belonging to their community.” Charlotte Ezebada emphasized the importance of balancing the power of the state with that of civil society, highlighting the central role of women in democratic dynamics.

The second panel brought together Cressan Agossou, a local elected official from Abomey-Calavi (Benin), and Aboubacar Al-Moustapha. Both speakers shared concrete examples of collaboration between youth and local authorities, particularly in citizen monitoring, co-creation of public policies, and community engagement.

Towards a sub-regional network of young leaders

Following the discussions, several recommendations emerged:

• the creation of a national citizen monitoring platform in each represented country;

• the internationalization of the Fair’s achievements;

• the establishment of a sub-regional network of young leaders committed to participatory democracy and citizen innovation.

A roadmap was adopted to prepare for the next edition.

As a reminder, the Citizenship Fair is an initiative of the Social Universities of Togo (UST), which works to strengthen young people’s capacities in citizen monitoring and encourage their active involvement in local governance.

Collaboration: Lidvie Mensah (Cotonou)