The evaluation analyses how the creation and consolidation of the Youth Council in M’Saken has contributed to the generation of youth projects and policies and has increased the effective participation of young people in the actions of the municipality from 2019 to 2022.

In February 2021 the Youth Council of M’Saken was created following a participatory process supported by MedCities and the municipality and financed by the Catalan Agency for Development Cooperation (ACCD).

This evaluation, conducted by an external expert, had the final objective of evaluating in a participative and qualitative way the participation of the young people of Msaken in local affairs following the creation of the Youth Council and its interlocution with the municipality.

The evaluation questions were framed by the following criteria:

1. Impact (results, changes created and positive effects);
2. Effectiveness (achievement of the Youth Council’s objectives);
3. Active and conscious participation of partners and target groups;
4. Sustainability of identified benefits;
5. Gender and human rights-based approach (GBA and HRBA).

The evaluation concluded that the objectives assigned to the projects have been achieved, that the results are very positive and encouraging, and that the foundations for sustainability are clearly present. The creation and consolidation of an elected council of the city’s youth have helped to mobilize youth from distant communities and associations and to involve them in local affairs; this has resulted in concrete and sustainable achievements as well as timely solutions to the challenges faced by youth.

As this experience is new and local youth policies are not well established in Tunisian municipalities, the coordination between the M’saken Youth Council, on the one hand, and the municipal council and administration on the other hand, presents some dysfunctions.  

The evaluation recommendations will be used to inform the design of future projects and to reinforce the achievements. They are derived from the evaluation findings in each section, including a section on relevance. They are grouped under four headings: collaboration and coordination between the municipality of M’saken and the Youth Council, improving the effectiveness of the Youth Council’s work, external communication and capitalization, and designing new projects.

You can read the full report here.