Youth Leadership Development Program--Tunisia

SFCG-Tunisia is empowering youth NGO leaders in 14 governorates across Tunisia to reinforce their role and participation in the transition to democracy. Tunisian youth were powerful players in the revolution, and this project aims to help them acquire the skills and structures necessary to become the politicians, media professionals, civil society leaders and social entrepreneurs of tomorrow, through the approach of building a culture of dialogue.

Toward this goal, SFCG-Tunisia is:

Supporting the participation of youth NGO leaders in national and local media

• By providing youth leaders with trainings and coaching in journalism techniques

• By supporting the production and broadcast of internet and audio-visual media products by youth

Encouraging and facilitating the participation of youth NGO leaders in local governance

• By establishing local youth councils to provide youth of different backgrounds and ideologies with a platform for discussion and cooperative action on issues of local importance

• By working with local officials to sensitize them to youth concerns and the potential for partnership with young people

• By coaching and training youth leaders in civic engagement

• By helping youth councils plan and carry out roundtable discussions on local issues with local government and civil society leaders

• By helping youth councils design and implement volunteer projects that will have a positive effect on their regions

Reinforcing the capacities of young leaders to effect changes at the local and national level

• By training youth leaders in citizenship, social entrepreneurship, NGO set-up and project design, and alternative methods of conflict resolution

• By coaching these leaders through the planning and implementation of their projects and roundtable discussions

SFCG believes that if youth are provided with the skills and channels of communication for constructive civic engagement to effect positive changes in their own communities, and if local officials are sensitized to youth concerns and become more willing and able to view young people as partners, then a stronger civil society and a more engaged cohort of youth will result. These stronger relationships will benefit both parties, creating strong communities and long-lasting peace.

The Youth Leadership Development Program is funded by the European Union, the US Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). 

Original Source: Search for Common Ground