After the Arab Spring, Tunisians have expressed a desire for increased government accountability and budget transparency. In response, civil society organizations (CSOs) are expanding their advocacy work on these issues and are developing their capacity to advocate for policy changes. CSOs lack the technical capacity to advocate, however, and require new tools and processes to advocate proactively for greater transparency and accountability from the government.
To address this need, FSVC recruited volunteer expert Richard O’Sullivan (Managing Director, Change Management Solutions) to lead two, two-day workshops in Tunisia, to help local CSOs develop advocacy tools that will make their campaigns for greater budget transparency more effective.
In May 2016, the FSVC volunteer expert conducted the workshops for 34 CSO leaders, on effective strategies and techniques to advocate the government for
greater budget transparency. The FSVC volunteer expert described how to create sustainable advocacy campaigns, create social goals, and presented examples and case studies of effective and ineffective campaigns.
In the second workshop, the FSVC volunteer expert trained participants on the steps needed to launch a successful campaign through public education, direct action and public policy. Thanks to his collaborative and practical approach, participants were very receptive to the recommendations of the FSVC volunteer
expert.
As a result of this project, CSOs in Tunisia learned practical tools and methods on how to undertake effective, non-confrontational advocacy campaigns to improve budget transparency in Tunisia. FSVC will continue to work with these CSOs on how to better advocate the government for greater accountability through similar workshops going forward.
FSVC’s program is funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), and aims to increase the effectiveness and accountability of the Government of Tunisia in implementing open government policies and strengthen the capacity of CSOs to advocate effectively for open government policies.
