November 2022, the time has finally come: the last part of the Shiraka trainings of 2022 took part in Tunis. In June, legal professionals and communication professionals from the MENA region came to the Netherlands for trainings on Administration of Justice, Legislation and Communicating with the Public. Now it was time to go to them. Over two weeks, CILC provided a series of training courses in Tunis to participants from different Arab countries and professional sectors. The aim of the training courses was to stimulate the rule of law in the relevant countries as much as possible by training legal professionals and communication professionals on varied topics. This way participants were not only shown how to start the change but were also given the key to being the change.
On November 2, the training of the first group of Administration of Justice started with an opening ceremony, followed by the discussion of the so-called Back Home Action Plans. This assignment, which participants received during the training in the Netherlands, is about the participants’ active thinking about what they would like to change professionally and personally. They also indicate how they want to achieve this, so that the plan is worked out in concrete terms. Now that four months have passed, it is about time to discuss the implementation of the various plans; what have participants achieved with their plans so far? Subsequent days included trainings on change management, the role of women in the judiciary in the MENA region and a study visit to the Administrative Court in Tunis.
On November 7, the three-day training on Legislation started. Again, the Back Home Action Plan was the central feature in the programme, focusing on how participants can be change agents in their respective institutions. The participants also visited the Center d’Etudes Juridiques et Judiciaires in Tunis. This center is a unique institute in the Arab world, that advises on behalf of the Ministry of Justice, the legislature in Tunisia before a law is drafted. Finally, former Minister of Justice Nadir Ben Ammou discussed with participants how to interpret laws, and judge Hichem Zouaoui informed them about the importance of a regulatory impact assessment.
On November 9, the last training started on Communicating with the Public. The participants extensively discussed what was learned and achieved with their Back Home Action Plans and were further trained in change management. The group was also able to become acquainted with the effect of digital media, reflecting on how to incorporate media technologies in the change they want to make. The training ended with a workshop on crisis management and how to deal with this in the workplace.
After each training, the groups had a closing ceremony with the distribution of well-deserved certificates. The sense of pride and joy radiated from their faces, which ensured that the Shiraka programme of 2022 held in Tunis was indeed a great success. Individuals are able to start a change as long as they know how. And with this training the participants finally obtained the keys to the how.
Curious to hear more about the experience of the participants of the first part of the training in the Netherlands? Watch this video below: