UN Women Transparency Portal

Region:Asia Pacific Current UN Women Plan Period Afghanisthan:2018-2022

World Bank Income Classification:Low Income

Least Developed Country:Yes

Gender Inequality Index:0.575

Gender Development Index:0.723

Population:209,497,025 Male:19,976,265 (9.5%) Female:189,520,760 (90.5%)

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outcome XM-DAC-41146-TUN_D_7.1

In 2025, institutions, conducting effective and risk-sensitive public policies in partnership with economic and social actors, put the country's resources at the service of inclusive, sustainable, resilient socio-economic development that generates decent jobs, particularly for the most vulnerable. (UNSDCF Effect 1)

The outcome is on track with progress made in the area of gender-sensitive public policies, as two major institutions for policymaking and implementation in Tunisia have committed to gender equality and women’s empowerment through Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) and programmatic collaboration with UN Women. First, the National School of Administration (NSA) signed an MOU with UN Women. The NSA is an important public administrative institution under the supervision of the Presidency of the government and mandated to ensure training for high and medium-level civil servants during the tenure of their positions. An MoU was signed between the National School of Administration and UN Women on 27 May 2022. As a result, 35 senior government officials, including 26 women, from the gender units of seven ministries have improved their knowledge in planning and implementing gender-sensitive public policies according to the training report of a training series provided by UN Women. Participating ministries included: the Ministry of Family, Women, Children and Elderly (MFFEPA), the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Equipment and Housing. In interviews with participants, they confirmed the success of the training and asked for additional training for the future. The training included the following modules, with two days per module: Team building in the context of governance and gender (September) Communication and public speaking (October) Inclusive governance and women's rights (October) Strategic planning towards the integration of gender perspective in the whole process as a lever of good governance (October) Organizational leadership towards a balanced representation of men and women in management and positions of power (October) Drafting of gender-sensitive legal texts (October) Advocacy and negotiation techniques (November) Gender-Responsive Budgeting (GRB) (November) Human resource management towards the integration of a gender perspective (November) Public policies and gender (November) Managerial practices to reduce professional gender inequalities (November) Women's leadership and knowledge transfer (December) UN Women conceptualised the training and hired the expert trainers and the NSA provided the training venue throughout the three months, all under a programme financed by the Government of Canada. Second, the Ministry of Finance has increased their commitment and capacity for gender-sensitive public policies and budgets. The Ministry of Finance and UN Women also formalized their partnership in an MoU signed on 27 May 2022. Within the framework of this partnership, 45 senior civil servants (10 men and 35 women) increased their understanding of gender-responsive budgeting (GRB). They represented the following ministries: MFFEPA, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Equipment and Housing. According to the training report, participants improved their ability to prepare sectoral action plans for gender mainstreaming and institutionalizing gender and to promote gender equality at all levels of the public budgeting process. During this training, the Finance Ministry’s Unit for Results-Based Budgeting (GBO) developed and provided the participants with “Gender-Responsive Budgeting sheets” (“Fiches BSG”) which explain how to integrate gender into budgetary processes. Throughout the workshop, the expert trainer used these sheets and updated them to explain in detail how every ministry may mainstream gender into their respective processes to develop gender-sensitive policies and budgets. The training report clearly showed the added value of the training with two concrete results: First, the participants are now convinced GRB must be integrated into budget processes and second, they have an actionable tool – the “GRB sheets” –to use to ensure their budgets are indeed gender-sensitive. Prior to this, 43 civil servants among the cohort (28 women and 15 men) had already increased their knowledge of the frameworks, methods and analytical tools of GRB based on feminist economics and how to apply them through two training sessions provided by UN Women between January to March 2022 . There, they learned about the latest and most innovative practices worldwide and evidence-based practices that facilitate effective implementation of GRB. In addition, they learned how GRB fits into the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals. The training also facilitated peer-to-peer exchange and learning of participants' innovative strategies, processes and good practices through discussion forums and experiences from other countries such as Morocco and Senegal. At the end of the training, participants were able to analyse the current state of GRB practices in Tunisia and develop GRB strategies that can be adapted to different contexts. Since the participants were the budgeting and planning focal points within their respective ministries, the training efficiently targeted the ideal audience for the implementation and sustainability of the training content. The two GRB training series were organised by UN Women Tunisia in partnership with the Central Unit for Results-Based Budget Management of the Ministry of Finance and in collaboration with the UN Women Training Centre in New York, which provided extensive technical support. Based on progress made, the strategy and theory of change are largely still applicable. If this strategy is successful, impact-level changes in the lives of women through public policies for inclusive, sustainable, resilient socio-economic development are expected in five (5) years.

outcome XM-DAC-41146-TUN_D_7.2

By 2025, health, education and social protection systems are resilient and ensure equitable access and quality services, especially for the most vulnerable, and effective engagement of the population (UNSDCF Effect 3)

The outcome is partly delayed due to a delay in a community health programme whose start date had to be moved from 2022 to 2023. Nevertheless, progress was made towards better policies and services for survivors of gender-based violence (GBV), particularly in the relatively neglected areas of economic and online GBV. First, progress has been made towards better qualitative data and statistics on GBV. The National Statistics Council (CNS) increased current access and also laid the foundation for future improvements in access to gender-sensitive statistics. First, it published the Gender Equality Profile , which presents available gender data and gaps for six Sustainable Development Goals, including statistics on economic GBV – particularly regarding prevalence and judicial proceedings. Moreover, in September, it developed the first draft of an Action Plan for the elaboration of the National Strategy for Statistical Development (NSSD). It did so in a workshop in September including key stakeholders from ministries, the National Statistics Institute, and the Central Bank of Tunisia. In a second workshop in October, participants discussed the draft Action Plan focusing on the following themes: women's economic empowerment, violence against women, women's education and training, women and health, and women and decision making. These results were achieved with the financial and conceptual support to provide knowledge products and workshops from UN Women under a project financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. In addition, decision-makers and service providers have access to new data for the improved implementation of the Organic Law No. 58-2017 on Ending Violence against Women (EVAW) and women and girls can access an important measuring tool as a result of two (2) new knowledge products. First, decision-makers and service providers can access the ‘Analysis of Law 58 with a focus on economic violence’, finalised by a Tunisian GBV expert hired by UN Women which incorporates data from extensive consultations and in-depth interviews with stakeholders from justice and service institutions as well as civil society. While the evaluation highlights the truly progressive nature of the law, it also identifies gaps and challenges, including in terms of prejudices in a patriarchal society, procedural gaps, and data gaps, particularly due to the lack of data collection and analysis around economic violence. It provides recommendations on how to address these challenges at the level of the legal text and in terms of data collection and institutional set-up of the justice and service systems. Plans for a wide range of stakeholders to discuss the evaluation are set for 2023. Second, regarding the new tool, UN Women completed the preliminary concept for the “Violentomètre,” a measuring tool for women and girls which captures the toxicity of behaviours in economic relations in the domestic and work sphere – be it formal or informal. Its dissemination in 2023 will also contribute to awareness-raising for economic GBV. Finally, the National Observatory to Combat Violence against Women Helpline should soon produce better statistics on GBV thanks to the increased capacity of 12 responders from the Observatory. In a workshop provided by UN Women, the Observatory’s responders learned to better collect and utilise the data they collect when receiving calls from women affected by violence, including economic violence. Second, women and girls as well as key stakeholders increased their awareness of GBV, particularly about online and economic violence, and their commitment to combat it. Regarding online violence against women (OVAW), 292 women and girls now have information and tools to combat online violence and stand up for their rights, to express themselves freely and to be active in the virtual space as in any public space. This result is based on reports from the 16 women who trained these women and girls (themselves participants in a training of trainers -ToT- offered by UN Women). The material from the ToT was made available by UN Women as a replicable training package. Moreover, throughout the ‘16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence,’ OVAW was a priority topic, including in a campaign for better services led by eight (8) representatives from civil society. In May, 28 participants in a roundtable discussion on OVAW from public institutions and civil society, including from the LGBTIQ+ community and people with disabilities, agreed on priority interventions to combat online violence. Among them were 24 women (three younger than 24). UN Women organized the roundtable to ensure inclusivity in its OVAW programming. According to the event report, the priorities include working on improving the legal framework, social norms, and services. In July, nine (9) authorities (6 women and 3 men) developed an action plan on ending OVAW. They included representatives from the Ministry of Interior and the National Agency on Computer Security and experts in the areas of law, cyber-crime, and sociology. The action plan, based on the criteria of relevance and feasibility, contains five (5) outputs and 14 actions to protect women from online violence. UN Women supported them by providing an expert in strategic planning and disseminating the priorities identified during the roundtable mentioned above. Moreover, 65 representatives from civil society, public institutions and the international community showed their interest in addressing OVAW by attending a seminar about the results of UN Women’s OVAW programming in Tunisia and Libya, funded by the Government of Finland. An awareness-raising campaign on economic GBV highlighted this key issue to the Tunisian general public through an innovative artistic debut in Diar Lemdina, a popular tourist village. For three weeks, clear messages on economic GBV appeared on four giant canvases on the central esplanade of this domestic tourist town. The topics addressed on the canvases ranged from the labour market and decision-making to the too-common death of female agricultural workers and the management of financial resources within the household. Nineteen (19) youth leaders from the Tunisian Scouts, including 14 women created these giant pieces of art during a three-day session under the supervision of two painters and a psychologist. These youth leaders were the winners of the first drawing competition on GBV , drawn from a pool of almost 200 youth, which took place in 2021. In addition, university students across the country will soon see a short film on economic GBV and the burden of care work, developed by UN Women in partnership with the Women’s Ministry. Additionally, the general public will soon receive norm and behaviour change messages related to GBV as part of an upcoming national campaign to end GBV, including economic GBV. Data from 22 focus group discussions with 221 participants across Tunisia in 2021 was analysed and organized to create the basis for the campaign. UN Women supported all these results in the framework of a joint programme on GBV funded by the Government of Canada. Specifically, it hired experts on GBV, psychologists, trainers, and facilitators and conceptualised and organised the various activities. Based on the progress made, the strategy and theory of change are largely still applicable and impact-level changes in the lives of women and girls through better systems to address GBV are expected in five (5) years.

outcome XM-DAC-41146-TUN_D_8.1

In 2025, accountable institutions supported by a harmonized legislative framework and committed populations guarantee the strengthening of the rule of law, the protection of human rights and social cohesion and justice, especially for the most vulnerable, in accordance with international conventions and standards and in complementarity and interdependence with inclusive and sustainable development efforts. (UNSDCF Effect 3)

The outcome is on track. Progress was made towards a system of governance and rule of law that is in line with international legal frameworks, including CEDAW (Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women). First, the pool of qualified women willing to run for election, win and serve in elective office, has expanded in Tunisia. Some 175 potential women candidates for elections strengthened their skills in leadership, political communication, campaigning, and prevention of political and electoral violence, according to the final report of the 12 training sessions in which they participated. The principle ‘Leave No One Behind’ was at the heart of this training, with over 50% of participants identified as ‘youth’ (18-35) and over 10% identified as women with a disability. Over 50 women came from the most disadvantaged regions (Gafsa, Seliana Kef, Sidi Bouzid). Training reports revealed that all women intended to run for the next elections and 22 presented their candidacy for the 2022 parliamentarian elections, which represents 10% of the total number of women candidates. The women received leadership training from four civil society organizations (CSOs): the League of Tunisian Women Voters, Tunisian Federation of Maghrebi Women Leaders, Aswat Nisaa and Nouvelle Capsa. The four CSOs had received a “ training of trainers ” (ToT) from UN Women with tools (trainer manuals, workbooks, presentations) and curriculum developed by UN Women’s Leadership and Governance Section. Second, government and civil society have more resources available to promote gender equality through legal frameworks. Representatives from 49 institutions, including four (4) Government representatives (Head of Government Administration, Ministry of Family, Women, Children and Elderly (MFFEPA), Ministry of Justice, National Observatory for the Elimination of Violence against women), 30 from civil society, and six (6) from embassies (Canada, France, Finland, Spain, Sweden, and European Union) have increased their awareness of legal discrimination against women and girls. They participated in the launch event of the “ Baseline Study on Inequalities and Discrimination against Women & Girls in Tunisian Legislation .” The report exposes the state of discriminatory laws at all levels, such as provisions on nationality and inheritance and includes recommendations to improve legislation, such as reform of the codes for nationality and personal status. UN Women Tunisia contributed through the 2021 development and 2022 dissemination of the report in partnership with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Research Centre for Documentation and Information Studies on Women . UN Women contributed to the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) draft report submitted to the expert committee for the UN Human Rights Council’s (HRC) Universal Periodic Review (UPR) for Tunisia in November 2022. It contributed on gender equality matters and developed an advocacy brief for the UN Women Geneva Liaison Office on key women’s human rights issues to be included in the recommendations issued to the Government of Tunisia. The outcome of the UPR will be considered by the HRC in February 2023. Also, 21 CSOs under the leadership of ATFD (Tunisian Association of Democratic Women) developed and endorsed an annex (“note complémentaire”) to update the 2021 CEDAW shadow report. It includes 35 points on the political and socio-economic developments during 2021 and 2022 and recommendations. This will support advocacy work of Tunisian civil society representatives who meet with the CEDAW Committee in February 2023. UN Women contributed with technical support to ATFD for the shadow report and the annex. Progress towards the outcome was also made under the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325. Regarding the 2018-2020 National Action Plan (NAP) on UNSCR 1325, a wide range of institutions now have a better understanding of the WPS agenda and the NAP. First, the MFFEPA and 22 members of the Steering Committee of the NAP (Ministries of Justice, Interior, Defence, Foreign Affairs, Health, Religious Affairs, Finance, Economy and Planification, Education, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sport) have increased their understanding of strengths and challenges of the first phase of the NAP and areas for improvement for the next phase. This was due to their involvement in the evaluation of the first phase of the NAP through evaluation interviews and in the presentation of the report in the presence of the MFFEPA Minister . According to the evaluation, the success of the next phase of the NAP depends on lead institutions taking the following steps: Establish a proper Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system; Maintain inter-ministerial connection and tap into synergies with other action plans; Conduct a cost analysis and dedicate adequate funding. 22 members of the Steering Committee (19 women/3 men) developed actionable recommendations for the next phase of the NAP in small working groups, which include: Sensitize ministers about the NAP in order to prioritize it in their respective budgets; Apply results-based management (RBM) for more realistic planning and periodic reviews; Engage the Ministry of Finance at an early stage and use gender-responsive budgeting. Second, 15 members of the Steering Committee improved their capacities in RBM in a four-day training on topics such as strategic planning, monitoring, and evaluation to ensure efficiency, transparency, and impact-level changes in the second phase NAP 1325. These results were captured in the workshop summary report. Steering Committee members requested this capacity development from UN Women. Third, 48 focal points (50% women) representing 24 governorates of Tunisia in the network of the National Commission for Countering Terrorism increased their awareness of the WPS agenda and gender-sensitivity in the prevention of violent extremism (PVE). During a workshop, they learned and exchanged information about gender mainstreaming and the linkage of WPS and PVE. Pre- and post-tests showed that they were convinced that global strategies for PVE must involve women as positive actors for prevention, and some recommended community-level safe spaces for women. Results in relation to the NAP were also achieved regarding committed populations. First, 34 participants (28 women/6 men) from CSOs from 11 diverse governorates working on a range of issues (women’s economic, vocational, and political empowerment; human rights; culture; and environment) have increased their awareness of the WPS agenda. According to workshop pre- and post-tests, participants are now able to relate the agenda’s distinct axes to their specific field of work. They participated in a four-day training about the role of civil society in WPS , including in developing, implementing, and monitoring the NAP. Second, 11 CSOs from six (6) diverse governorates improved their understanding of the role of civil society in the promotion of the WPS agenda and learned about the concepts and tools needed to plan and implement an effective advocacy strategy, including in the framework of the NAP. The 11 organizations had responded to a call for CSOs by the MFFEPA and UN Women ahead of the launch of the NAP’s second phase. UN Women contributed to these results through direct technical support to the MFFEPA, funding support and by providing the conceptual framework for these workshops and processes, including the international NAP evaluation consultant. The Government of Finland was the primary funder for the NAP-related results and contributed conceptually and logistically to events. Based on the progress made, the strategy and theory of change are still applicable. If this strategy is successful, impact-level changes in the lives of women and girls in the areas of WPS and full normative gender equality are expected within five (5) years.

outcome XM-DAC-41146-TUN_O_1

UN Women is an accountable and trustworthy development organization that manages its financial and other resources with integrity and in line with its programmatic ambitions and fiduciary obligations.

During the reporting year, the CCO upheld its accountability and turstworthiness by ensuring effective and robust results-based management, financial management controls, internal and external transparency of financial data, timely and accurate donor reporting, responsive and secure information systems, environmental sustainability and a reduced carbon footprint, and physical security. In Tunisia, marked by political and socio-economic challenges that demanded high-level technical and coordination expertise deployed from UN Women, the CO took the lead in developing high-level analyses and briefs on the situation of women in Tunisia to inform executive decisions on the UN's role in the country. It also continued to implement its coordination role by mainstreaming gender within UNCT as the chair of the Gender Theme Group (GTG) and by co-chairing the Gender Coordination Group (GCG), which consists of international stakeholders, governmental officials, and representatives from civil society. As a result, the UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard was carried out successfully and a UNCT action plan developed. Moreover, thanks to the active engagement of the Embassy of Spain in the GTG, Tunisia was included in the ‘Safe Cities’ global flagship programme. The CO received funding from several donors (Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MPTF), and the Governments of Japan, Canada, Finland, Sweden, SIDA, France and Switzerland) to implement various programmes in WPPL, WPS, WEE, EVAW and gender statistics, covering programme, administrative and operational costs. Financial reporting to those donors, and reporting on budget and resources allocations to HQ have been completed on time and in line with corporate rules and regulations. Furthermore, these funds were properly managed in line with its programmatic ambitions and fiduciary obligations with respective program teams and responded to the identified needs.

outcome XM-DAC-41146-TUN_O_2

UN Women effectively leverages and expands its partnerships, communications and advocacy capabilities to increase support for and financing of the gender equality agenda, while securing sustainable resourcing for the delivery of its own mandate.

UN Women CCO Tunisia Libya continued to leverage and expand its partnerships, communication and advocacy capacities for financing for gender equality. The Tunisia CO conducted a light review of its Biannual Work Plan to analyze new opportunities for partnerships and resourcing. The CO focused on forging new alliances with non-traditional partners and developed a ToR to develop a private sector strategy. Moreover, the Tunisia CO finalized and presented the UNCT-Swap Gender Scorecards results, with important findings and suggested recommendations on how to leverage investment towards GEWE that was endorsed by the UNCT. Building on the Score-Cards results, UN Women in collaboration with the RCO has developed strategies to implement the action plan for 2023 aiming at strengthening gender mainstreaming efforts in UNCT Tunisia. In addition, in 2022, the office continued to work with men and boys for gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE). Firstly, through the ‘Men and Women for Gender Equality’ (MWGE) programme, whose International Men and Gender Equality Survey (IMAGES), a quantitative and qualitative analysis of men's and women's beliefs and attitudes regarding GEWE included 1,200 men, which were reached by the implementing partner, the Arabic Institute for Human Rights through a household survey that addressed women's participation in public and political life, domestic violence, reproductive and sexual health, economic opportunities, and sexual harassment. In parallel, the other implementing partner, Beity, conducted key informant interviews with 34 men to conduct a qualitative analysis that complemented the quantitative findings. At least 100 representatives of civil society organizations and media outlets (77 women/24 men) increased their knowledge in the development and launch of the study. Through 58 articles and interviews, the outlets further disseminated the findings in national and international media platforms. While there are no recorded numbers, UN Women expects that thousands of people (men and women) in the general public improved their knowledge of the root causes of gender inequality and its impact on daily life. MWGE is not only unique due to its engagement with men and boys for GEWE. Its overall structure relies on strong interaction between UN Women with the national implemeting partners and the regional partner, Equimundo. Secondly, UN Women worked with boys (12-17) from the Tunisian Scouts under a Joint Programme with UNDP addressing economic gender-based violence (GBV). In 2022, 19 youth leaders from the Tunisian Scouts, including 5 boys, created four giant canvases with awareness raising messages on economic GBV, a little-known issue among the general public. The canvases were presented during three weeks on the esplanade of Diar Lemdina, a popular tourist village. The topics addressed ranged from the labour market and decision-making to the too-common death of female agricultural workers and the management of financial resources within the household. The 5 boys created the canvases under the supervision of two painters and a psychologist in a period of three days. They were among the winners of the first drawing competition on GBV with almost 200 youth in 2021.

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