From Protest to Participation: Evaluating Youth Political Engagement in Tunisia- June 2018

Addressing the needs of young people in the Arab world has been a pressing policy question for most of this decade following the protests that erupted throughout the region in 2010/11.

Recognising the growing importance of improving the inclusion of young people to maintain international stability, in December 2015 the UN Security Council unanimously adopted resolution 2250. It urges all member states to increase youth representation in decision-making.

In Tunisia’s municipal elections in May this year, two thirds of newly elected representatives were under the age of 45 years old, whereby 37% of seats were won by candidates under 35 years old.

The issues facing young people are in many cases the core challenges facing the region, including, migration, terrorism, civil conflict, revolution, transition, civil society activism, economic development and meaningful political participation.

In light of the municipal elections in Tunisia, Forward Thinking prepared a short briefing paper “From Protest to Participation: Evaluation Youth Political Engagement in Tunisia” that reflects on our experience of political engagement in Tunisia since 2012 and identifies recommendations for consideration regarding youth engagement more broadly.