Tunisia: Post Revolution

Following successful and orderly national elections in 2011 and 2014, Tunisia continues its transition from dictatorship to democracy with municipal elections to be held in March 2017. This roundtable discussion brings together representatives of major civil society organisations who will examine post revolution Tunisia and its ongoing progress towards democratisation and political reform.They will share expertise and experience that will enhance Tunisia’s capacity for successful democratic consolidation at all levels including local governance. The representatives are:

Najla Abbes  - League of Tunisian Women Voters 
Najla Abbes has a Master’s degree in English Literature from The Higher Institute of Languages in Tunisia. She was a Fulbright Language Teaching Assistant at Pfeiffer University, North Carolina from 2007 to 2008. Najla is the co-founder and program coordinator of the League of Tunisian Women Voters (LET). The league aims to improve Tunisian women's ability to participate effectively in the political and public life, especially in politics and electoral practices, as voters and candidates based on the principles of human rights and social gender. As a program coordinator, Najla developed project proposals on women empowerment strategies and helped to implement an exchange program between Tunisian female potential candidates for the elections and Danish female MPs. Following the revolution, Najla was invited to deliver presentations and present papers on women’s activism and political participation in different international conferences, workshops and seminars.

Chaima Bouhlel - Al Bawsala 
After completing her tertiary education at Harvard, Chaima worked in civil society organisations, both national and international. Her experience includes building the capacity of local media institutions and supporting citizen journalism, as well as improving access to microfinance products that are best adapted to vulnerable groups across Tunisia. Chaima is the Project Manager of ‘Marsad Local’; an Al Bawsala project that aims to better engage citizens in local decision making and budget allocation through access to information and using social accountability tools.

Ines Ben Youssef - Free Patriots 
Ines Ben Youssef graduated from the Faculty of Humanities and social sciences in English civilization, literature and linguistics. She is an active member of the Tunisian league for Human rights volunteering for the Tunisian legislative and presidential elections in 2014. Ines raises money for charity projects and is a member of a local association the 'Free Patriots' in Beja. Ines has held a training course in human development and is a participant in the Awaken Youth project of communication and local governance training that is initiated by the association Culture for Citizenship and funded by MEPI.

Saber Houchati - National Federation of Tunisian Cities 
Saber is Executive Director of National Federation of Tunisian Cities, the umbrella association for municipalities advocating decentralisation and local democracy.  Prior to this he served as the Director of the Municipal Development Program. He has also been the Service Chief of Decentralised Cooperation and a civil servant in the Ministry of Interior/General Directorate of Local Collectivities.

Ghazoua Ltaief - Sawty
Ghazoua Ltaief is the president of the national board of an NGO, Sawty, which promotes citizenship awareness and political and civic engagement among youth. She also manages a program of the Fondation de France supporting Tunisian associations creating economic opportunities for youth. She is a trainer in youth programs, specialising in empowerment and youth rights.

Fethi Mansouri - Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation
Alfred Deakin Professor Fethi Mansouri holds a Deakin University research chair in migration and intercultural studies and is the Director of the Alfred Deakin Research Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation. In 2013 he was awarded a UNESCO Chair in comparative research on ‘Cultural Diversity and Social Justice’. He is the Editor-in-chief of the Journal of Citizenship and Globalisation Studies, editor of the Journal of Intercultural Studies (Routledge) and founding co-editor of the international journal of Social Inclusion (Cogitatio). Professor Mansouri is a global expert advisor to the United Nations (Alliance of Civilisations) on cultural diversity and intercultural relations and is a prominent scholar nationally and internationally.

Belhassen Turki  - Tunisian Local Governance Project
Belhassen Turki is the manager of the Tunisian Local Governance Project at SKL International. The project is affiliated to the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions, with the National Federation of Tunisian Cities and the Tunisian Ministry of Local Affairs.

To Register

This event is supported by the Australian Government through the Council for Australian-Arab Relations (CAAR) of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.