CAIRO - Giving young people a role in active politics and policymaking is a dream the young Egyptians are still struggling to achieve. However, one of the India's youngest parliamentarians sees that this isn't at all easy, as it requires patience, time and effort. Agatha Sangama, Indian Minister of State for Rural Development, who will turn 32 in July, was one of the youngest parliamentarians when she was elected in 2008 for the Tura constituency in Meghalaya in Northeast India. She was only 28. One year later, she was re-elected and named Minister of State for Rural Development in the new Congress-led coalition Government. Today Agatha is still the youngest minister in the Indian Cabinet, but more, even younger MPs have now entered the Indian Parliament! There is a strong female presence in the politics of India, where the President, the head of the ruling party and the Speaker of Parliament are all women. "Young people active in politics is something new in India. It took a long time to evolve to reach this point," said Agatha, who recently paid her first visit to Egypt. "In the past, we have had many young people, who played big roles in many fields – Rajiv Gandhi was only in his forties when he became India's Prime Minister," added Agatha, who believes that the politics in India is different from that in other countries, while the political road in India has been a long one. And although she doesn't have any advice or prescriptions for others, she believes that young people working in these important positions can make a difference in the lives of the nations. "It's very important for the development and prosperity of any country to involve the youth in policymaking," said Agatha, who also believes that the involvement of women in Indian policymaking has changed people's lives. Agatha, who comes from a political family, stresses that engaging in politics at a young age is a difficult task that needs effort and time. “The results will vary from one person to another,” she stressed, admitting that the fact that she was born into a political family has helped her to create a space for herself. Agatha's father, P. A. Sangama, is a former Speaker of Lok Sabha and Chief Minister of Meghalaya. He was a co-founder of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and remained a member of the Lok Sabha for eight terms. Her brothers James and Conrad are also in State politics. Agatha believes that it's important to have a good combination between young people and experienced people in any system. "In the Indian Cabinet, we have a young group of ministers. They are well educated and experienced, offering the country new ideas and a new vision," she said, adding that her country has evolved a mindset allowing it to accommodate and benefit from them. Agatha received her LLB degree from Pune University and was later called to the bar in Delhi. She did her Masters in Environmental Management at Nottingham University in Great Britain. Being an environmentalist has helped her a lot to deal with several programmes to help better use clean water and sanitation. Being Minister for Rural Development, she is responsible for the rural areas where nearly 70 per cent of the Indian population live. This may seem like a mission impossible for a young lady, but Agatha is happy that many of her programmes have already begun to bear fruit. "My task is not to urbanise these rural areas; rather, it is to make the living conditions comfortable for the people there, so they will work there, instead of immigrating to the big cities, where they only add to the stress," she explained, stressing that other ministries and institutions are helping her by adapting several programmes to achieve those objectives. One of the programmes that Agatha would like to share with other countries is the National Rural Livelihood Mission, that aims at reducing poverty by enabling poor households to access gainful self-employment and skilled wage employment opportunities. The hoped-for result of this is an appreciable improvement in their livelihoods on a sustainable basis, through building strong and sustainable grassroots institutions for the poor. Part of this programme is devoted to empowering women socially and economically. "This will also help them to be part of the political scene one day," said Agatha, who thinks that women can make a difference in the life of nations. In India, 50 per cent of parliamentary seats are reserved for women. During her visit to Cairo to attend the 17th General Session of the Afro-Asian Rural Development Organisation (AARDO) Conference, Agatha also talked about her experiences in establishing model villages. On her first visit to the Egyptian capital, the young Minister said that, in the wake of last year's revolution, Egypt has great potential for change. "It's very inspiring to see these young Egyptians participating in the revolution. People around the world have high expectations and I look forward to see what is in store for Egypt.” But beside her papers, plans and inspirations, Agatha, who loves photography, brought her camera with her. "Of course, I'll take some snaps of the Pyramids, but what I really want to capture is the spirit of this city with my camera," said the young Minister, who feels quite at home in Cairo's vibrant, noisy atmosphere.
