September 15th, 2026
Democracy is often discussed in terms of elections, political parties and public institutions. But democracy is also about something more fundamental: whether people can understand, participate in and influence the decisions that shape their lives.
This year’s International Day of Democracy reminds us that when every voice counts, democracy delivers. For Pink Parliament, that means asking a necessary question: Can democracy truly deliver in Barbados and across the Caribbean when girls and young women remain largely outside the spaces where decisions are made?
Girls are affected by public policy long before they are old enough to vote or stand for elected office. Decisions about their education, access to healthcare, sexual and reproductive health, protection from violence, safety online and in public spaces, and pathways into employment shape their present and their future. Yet they are often expected to watch from the margins, consulted only after priorities have been set and treated as though their age makes their experiences less credible. Too often, their inclusion in political and civic spaces is merely ceremonial. They are asked to attend, speak or be photographed without being given any meaningful role in shaping the agenda or determining what happens next.
Girls are not waiting to become citizens. They are citizens now.
Meaningful participation requires more than inviting young people into a room or asking them to endorse decisions they did not shape. It requires access to information, an understanding of how institutions work, safe spaces to express different perspectives and real pathways to influence policy and public life. A voice does not truly count simply because it was heard. It counts when it is considered, respected and capable of influencing an outcome.
Adults and institutions must also listen without condescension. Girls should not have to imitate older political leaders, suppress their identities or prove that they are exceptional before being taken seriously. Across the Caribbean, political authority is still often treated as something that belongs to older people. Young people are expected to listen and learn but are rarely trusted to shape decisions themselves—especially girls, who may struggle to be recognised as credible political thinkers in their own right. The responsibility cannot rest solely on girls to overcome systems that were not designed with them in mind. Governments, parliaments, political parties, schools, civil society organisations and the media must help remove the structural, cultural and economic barriers that restrict their participation.
When girls and young women are missing from public decision-making, the issues affecting them may be discussed without them, misunderstood or addressed only after harm has occurred. Their participation changes who is present, which questions are asked, whose knowledge is valued and which solutions are considered possible.
Since 2019, Pink Parliament has worked to build this foundation by providing girls and young women between the ages of 14 and 20 with civic education, mentorship and leadership development. Through the programme, participants learn how decisions are made, examine the systems governing their lives, develop advocacy and communication skills, engage with women leaders and explore how they can contribute to their communities and countries.
Our work is non-partisan. We do not tell girls what to think, which political party to support or which position they must take. We create space for them to question, analyse, disagree, deliberate and form informed views of their own. These are not simply leadership skills; they are democratic skills.
The purpose is not only to prepare girls who may one day enter electoral politics. Democracy needs informed and engaged people throughout society: advocates, organisers, public servants, researchers, journalists, educators, diplomats, community leaders and citizens willing to hold institutions accountable. Political participation takes many forms, and girls should be able to discover the forms that are right for them.
Civic education must not become a substitute for access to power. We must prepare girls to participate while transforming the institutions in which that participation takes place. It is not enough to teach girls to raise their hands if no one intends to call on them. It is not enough to invite them to speak if their contributions will not influence what happens next. Participation without influence is not inclusion; it is performance.
On this International Day of Democracy, Pink Parliament calls for:
- Civic education that helps young people understand how government works and how they can participate in it, question it and hold it accountable;
- Sustained and accessible channels for girls and young women to identify public priorities, contribute to policy and receive clear follow-up on how their contributions were used;
- Greater investment in girl-led and youth-led organisations, alongside stronger pathways into politics, public service and community leadership; and
- Political institutions, schools, civil society organisations and the media to treat girls as legitimate participants in public life rather than occasional guests within it.
Democracy is not strengthened by asking young people to wait quietly for their turn. It is strengthened when they are equipped to participate, trusted to contribute and able to see that their participation has meaning. For Caribbean democracy to remain relevant and responsive, young people must be able to recognise themselves not only in its future, but in its present.
Girls belong wherever decisions are being made. Not as tokens or mere symbols of inclusion. Not only as future leaders. But as thinkers, advocates, organisers and citizens whose voices, experiences and ideas are essential to the democratic life of our countries.
When girls’ voices count, democracy delivers—for everyone.
Media Contact:
Ronelle King
Project Manager
Pink Parliament
Email: pinkparliament@gmail.com | info@lifeinleggings.org
Website: www.lifeinleggings.org
Phone: +1 (246) 830-9574
About Pink Parliament
Pink Parliament is an award-winning, non-partisan civic and political leadership programme for young women and girls by Life In Leggings: Caribbean Alliance Against Gender-based Violence (Registered Charity #1602).
Through civic education, mentorship, and leadership development, Pink Parliament equips participants with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to participate meaningfully in political and civic life. The programme creates opportunities for girls to engage with women leaders and explore pathways into politics, public service, advocacy, and community leadership.
Life In Leggings: Caribbean Alliance Against Gender-based Violence 