A councillor should ensure the mental, physical as well as spiritual emancipation of inhabitants in the locality.

Dhanita Devi Ramsaran is an elected village councillor of the District Council of Flacq since the year 2020. She has known Gender Links via social media and has also previously attended a workshop. Recently, she attended the council workshop on gender mainstreaming in collaboration with the European Union in September 2022. She affirms that Gender Links has provided much insight on how society creates differences between men and women and has spread awareness on laws protecting women. 

As a proactive councillor, Ramsaran demonstrates great sincerity and love towards her village and citizens. She asserts that teamwork, being an active listener to the grievances of citizens and facilitating communication are all very important as a councillor working for the benefit of the inhabitants in her village. In terms of the activities organised by herself in collaboration with the District Council of Flacq, she highlights that a football pitch has recently been inaugurated and that every week, indoor and outdoor activities are organised for people of all ages and especially for children. In addition to visiting citizens at their homes, Ramsaran also harnesses social media as a powerful medium of communication. She is especially keen to understand the reasons for the low participation of women and families in activities organised at council level. She also indicates that a WhatsApp Group for the citizens of her village has been created and another specific women’s group is also in place to ensure that women can voice out their concerns. 

At a personal level, Ramsaran believes that praise and criticism are part and parcel of the process of working as a councillor with people of different ages and mindsets. Nonetheless, councillors should bear in mind that the ultimate aim is to ensure the wellbeing of inhabitants and to take the right decision at the right time. There is also the need to remain patient in the face of criticism and not be discouraged. Ramsaran has successfully presented an environmental friendly project at the national level whereby a strategy has been devised for zero plastic usage in her village. Furthermore, Ramsaran believes that visiting schools, improving school infrastructures and providing stationeries are important to support the educational attainment of primary students. 

During her working experience as councillor, Ramsaran points out that many women have told her that they cannot attend courses offered at council level or work as they are restricted by their husbands. Albeit it is difficult to convince women to attend courses, Ramsaran always tries to reach a compromise and motivates the women to see the advantages of investing in their personal and professional development. In relation to the promotion of cultures, 

Ramsaran is proud to announce that a young group from her village (participants were aged 15 to 23 years old) has won the 5th place in the National Drama Competition for the Bhojpuri language category. Ramsaran is brimming with future plans for her village. She seeks to actively increase the participation of all citizens in all activities organised at council level. She wishes to complete a synthetic pitch project, fully establish the Women’s Wing of her village whereby women will have their say in decision-making at the local level and to facilitate communication via an online application which has jointly been created by the Village Council and a youth organisation in the area named ‘Nou Ecroignard’. All inhabitants can download the application, lodge complaints and councillors receive live notifications. Councillors can then delegate who will take care of which issues and the respective solutions. 

In addition to the above, Ramsaran and other councillors did their best to establish a new, spacious health care centre in the village. It has been approved by the Ministry of Health and a site visit has been done. With the help of the District Council of Flacq, stands have been set up in the local football ground, with only some of the wok left to be completed. Village councillors are now aiming at establishing a cloak room to improve the infrastructure. Ramsaran also holds the promotion of ancestral languages such as Bhojpuri at heart and wishes to open a school whereby children can learn about scriptures and spirituality. As a councillor, she firmly believes that one should ensure the mental, physical as well as spiritual emancipation of inhabitants in the locality. 

Ramsaran encourages young people to act on their rights, seize opportunities that come their way and have the guts to take up challenges. As part of accepting the ups and downs of life, she highlights that any challenge will provide constructive experience for the future. Politics is indeed an interesting field whereby learning never ends. She wishes to remind young people that they can serve their country while engaging themselves in politics. Youth can also come together to organise activities and bring lasting changes in the lives of not only inhabitants in their locality but the country as a whole.