civil society 6

Marine pollution in Tunisia: Pandemic at a tipping point

You take a walk by the seaside, thirsty for the Tunisian scenery and the beauty of the azure waves brushing the strands of beach sand. Instead, the first things your eyes catch are stray plastic cups, bags, straws, and the list goes on. Marine pollution in Tunisia has always been, but only became a red flag in the past few years when international NGOs started to loudly voice their concerns about the disastrous levels reached in the Mediterranean Sea.

Governance of civil society associations: the gap between legislation and practice

Since the revolution, the number of civil society associations in Tunisia has more doubled, reaching some 19 thousand. In the context of establishing a “participative democracy” with citizens and civil society as principal actors (Article 139 of the new constitution), Decree-law 88 of September 2011 guaranteed the “freedom to create, belong to, and carry out activities through associations, and the strengthening of the role of civil society organizations, as well as their development and respect for their independence.”

6th Youth Forum in Gafsa: France-Tunisia Cooperation and its Discontents

Chartered buses from l’Institut Français headed towards Gafsa to assemble at the 6th Youth Forum, which each year, celebrates decentralized cooperation between France and Tunisia. Behind the “support” of civil society appears to be the dissemination of a doctrine; one which claims that what will help boost start-ups is a solution for mass unemployment and marginalization. In light of some “success stories”, how many are left behind?

Tunisia’s Quartet Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize … and the world responds

Amidst the flurry of headlines and articles to have surfaced since yesterday’s announcement, reports indicate a range of reactions, from unabashed praise to skepticism. On the #NobelPeacePrize Twitter feed, the more skeptical and tactfully sarcastic comments posted by Tunisian netizens certainly constitute the more colorful—and necessarily critical—category of responses to the Nobel Peace Prize designation for 2015.