Meet Caroline Banura

Caroline Banura is a trainer with a master’s degree in local governance and human rights and has over 20 years of experience working in the field of women’s empowerment in Uganda. From 2007 to 2014, Caroline served as a Research and Advocacy Officer at the Rural Women Empowerment Network. Since 2014, Caroline has been advancing women’s leadership and electoral participation in Uganda through training women CSO leaders in advocacy strategies (including on social media), training journalists in gender-sensitive coverage of electoral processes and strengthening the skills of women candidates in governance issues. 

Since 2015, Caroline is the Executive Director of the Centre for Development Outreaches Africa (CEDOA), which aims to provide data-driven information, education, communication and empowerment programs, and technology-aided humanitarian assistance to marginalized communities. In the 2021 elections, Caroline created the “Women’s Situation Rooms” which promoted women’s peaceful participation in elections in Uganda. Physical rooms were hosted by CEDOA regionally in Kabale, Arua, Soroti, Gulu, Mbarara and Kampala to monitor and receive cases of election related violence against women. This information was shared with the security operatives for response. 

Diana Kirungi from the Great Lakes Union for Inclusive Development (GUIDE) together with Caroline Banura from Centre for Development Outreaches Africa (CEDOA) will develop a peer learning project for the staff and members of both CSOs. GUIDE will train CEDOA in advocacy strategies for prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) and develop a resource guide on PSEA for marginalized women. Both CSOs’ staff members will participate in training on mental and emotional well-being to increase their resilience, and CEDOA will train GUIDE’s staff in media and digital literacy. Additionally, the CSOs will conduct joint visits to women refugees and develop media awareness campaigns to prevent SEA of women.