ANHRE, through its regional members took part in the scope of this project in partnership with Equitas (Canada) to develop a toolkit on citizenship education in five countries (Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Morocco) for the period between Oct. 2010 to Oct. 2012. It aimed to promote respect for human rights and democratic citizenship in the Middle East and North Africa.
As part of the program Citizenship Education in the Middle East and North Africa: A path to Sustainable Democracy, Peace and Security, Equitas along with ANHRE and the focal points in the five countries (Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Morocco) developed a practical Toolkit for women and youth "Let's Act Together for Change"
The project started an inception mission to explore the context and build on previous projects on the citizenship. After the inception mission, the toolkit had been developed and the focal points participated in a regional TOT for 20 participants from the targeted countries. The community action projects after the TOT had been implemented locally in supervision by Equitas, focal points and ANHRE. Moreover, Success stories had been documented and shared among the participants through webinar as web-based seminar.
The project recognizes that human rights principles and values are powerful tools to enhance participation, reinforce accountability and create spaces for peaceful dialogue. A toolkit has been developed as a valuable resource for all those interested in the long-term process of building democracy in the Middle East and North Africa.
The Toolkit outlines approaches and activities that can help engage communities in a process of critical reflection while equipping them and motivating them to take concrete actions to enhance democratic participation. It was produced following an in-depth needs assessment and from an extensive piloting phase.
The format allows users to choose and adapt the approaches and activities that will best respond to the needs of their communities and be most appropriate in their context.
The goal of the Toolkit:
The goal of the Toolkit is to build necessary skills at the community level to undertake community-action projects that will contribute to greater respect for human rights and democratic citizenship.
The objectives of the Toolkit:
• To equip civil society organizations and decision-makers with knowledge and skills to better promote citizen participation and engagement in their communities
• To increase the participation of local communities in developing and implementing community-action projects to address issues that affect them
• To facilitate dialogue among civil society organizations, communities, government authorities and the media on issues of concern to the community
The Toolkit is designed primarily for use by civil society organizations and decision-makers working in non-formal and formal educational settings, coordinating activities on democratic citizenship with youth aged 16 to 30 and with women.
The Toolkit has 4 sections.
- Section 1 – The Toolkit:
This section provides an overview of the Toolkit and how to use it.
- Section 2 – Doing a Community-Action Project:
This section includes an overview of the project development process and a step-by-step description to guide groups in the development of their community-action project:
Project Preparation
Step 1 – Exploring Your Context
Step 2 – Targeting Specific Changes
Step 3 – Preparing an Action Plan
Step 4 – Taking Action
Step 5 – Monitoring the Action and Making Adjustments
Step 6 – Final Evaluation and Next Steps.
Section 3 –Activities:
This section provides the user with a selection of activities and case studies that can be used in the community-action projects.
3.1 – Icebreaker Activities
3.2 – Activities, Organized by Theme
3.3 – Case Studies
3.4 – Monitoring and Evaluation Activities.
The educational approach:
The Toolkit is based on a transformative learning approach. As such, the activities and projects are intended to go beyond mere transmission of knowledge and skills and aim towards creating awareness of human rights and encouraging action by having participating groups critically reflect on their lived experience and determine changes they want to see in their communities. Building on their lived experience, groups engage in a process where they come to realize that not only do they have the right to participate in their community, but also the responsibility to do so. The approach, therefore, promotes the active participation of youth and women in an empowerment process that encourages them to incorporate human rights values into their daily lives as well as developing appropriate actions that promote these values in their communities.
The Toolkit is designed to engage groups in a process that extends over a period of a few weeks or months. Specific activities can also be used independently. A variety of methods and techniques promoting critical reflection leading to action for change will be used in the Toolkit activities and projects. These include: debates, theatre, arts, music, sports, skits, games, community mapping, etc. The Toolkit follows a project development process model and takes groups through the different steps outlined below.
The main themes addressed in the Toolkit
Key themes related to democratic citizenship addressed in this Toolkit and outlined below were identified through a needs validation process conducted in Egypt, Morocco, Palestine, Jordan and Iraq from January to April 2011. The findings were also informed by the work of Equitas and its partners in the Middle East and North Africa over the last five years as well as an extensive review of existing educational and research materials on the subject of citizenship in the Middle East and North Africa.
Through the development of a community-action project, groups will have the opportunity to explore their own contexts, identify issues that are important in their communities, determine what they would like to change or improve in the current situation and develop a plan for doing it. Groups will address their issues within the framework of one or more of the 5 main themes outlined in the Toolkit. Activities, case studies and resources are provided to assist them in this process.
Women’s Rights
In the countries of focus, women’s rights are not respected to the same extent as the rights of men and discrimination against women is a daily reality. Customs and traditions play an important role in restricting women’s participation and fulfillment of their basic rights. Social pressures on both women and men to conform to traditional roles are still quite strong, especially at the level of the family. Religion is sometimes instrumentalized against promoting women’s interests. In any citizenship education project, the question of gender equality and the advancement of women’s rights should be considered.
Identity
Diversity needs to be considered when implementing an initiative on democratic citizenship. Some of the groups to take into consideration include: youth, women, children, people living with disabilities, tribal communities, Bedouins, religious groups, urban versus rural communities, linguistic minorities, Christians as well as refugees in different countries. Sub-identities are generally important for people, ensuring their protection in social life, sometimes to a greater extent than their national identity. During the needs validation process a number of people mentioned the discrimination they face related to their identities. The integration of citizens from different origins (refugees amongst others) in particular was described as difficult.
“The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect. It means understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences. These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or other ideologies. It is the exploration of these differences in a safe, positive, and nurturing environment. It is about understanding each other and moving beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual.”
Rights and Responsibilities:-
The needs validation revealed that people are usually aware of their rights and responsibilities, but often they are unable to claim their rights or contribute to defending the rights of others. Concepts related to citizenship remain difficult for some people. There is little or no space in society for citizens to put rights into practice. In a few cases, it was also mentioned that the focus is often put on rights, with responsibilities being neglected.
Civic Participation and Engagement:
Civic participation and engagement becomes a reality when human rights are promoted and protected. Youth and women, especially those who participated in the needs validation process indicated that they could express their opinions in certain situations, but that their opinions were seldom taken into account by relevant decision makers. Moreover, there is often a lack of opportunity for many traditionally marginalized segments of the population to participate in decision-making processes, despite their desire to serve their communities and their country. Most of the young people consulted did not participate in elections, citing that their participation would not change the current situation, due in particular to the absence of youth representatives at the political level. Consultations held indicated that participation in elections does not have an impact on the lives of youth, women and other marginalized groups.
Challenges:
Bureaucracy at the local and national levels delays implementation of development projects and community initiatives and impacts on citizens’ willingness to participate. Corruption and lack of accountability and transparency are considerable barriers affecting the legitimacy of government, resulting in frustration and thirst for change among citizens. Lack of respect for freedom of expression, information, assembly, opinion and religion continue to curb public life in the five targeted countries, including the involvement of their citizens in civic engagement initiatives. There is little awareness among the population about what government responsibilities include and how government institutions function or are supposed to function. Government officials, for their part, have limited ability to consult the population and include people concerned in decision-making processes. The absence of citizenship education in schools is also an obstacle, resulting in low participation of youth in public life. Additional obstacles to democracy and participation include violence at different levels (family, community, country) which influences people’s willingness and opportunities to participate in social and community activities. Dialogue between the government and the population is crucial in developing an initiative on citizenship.
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