Hiwar Tounsi, results 2019

The Hiwar Tounsi project, for which co-development and implementation began two years ago together with the Tunisian association Barr Al Aman has contributed to enhancing media coverage of the elections and to increasing the quality and quantity of media information relating to local political life.

In 2019, CFI continued its support for the development of the Barr Al Aman platform, which made it possible to increase the number of productions (programmes and columns, live interviews, reports, infographics, press reviews, as well as publication of investigative reports).

The partnership with CFI over the Tunisian electoral period was crucial, as it enabled us to change our approach to developing our media outlet.
Mohamed Haddad, Chief Editor of Barr Al Aman

More than 150 elected officials from the municipalities in the governorates of Sidi Bouzid, Kairouan and Gabès also took part in sessions to raise awareness on the need to communicate their activities to citizens via several information-sharing tools: announcements, press conferences, crisis communication and social media.

Personalised advice for covering elections

In order to prepare for the presidential election and legislative elections in autumn 2019, around 20 journalists from various regions (Gafsa, Gabès, Sfax, Medenine, Tataouine, Djerba, Sousse, Kairouan, Kasserine and Jendouba) benefited from support to help them organise their editorial offices. After having experienced the different ways of covering an election campaign, each journalist presented their media outlet’s editorial project for covering the legislative elections and received personalised advice from two trainers.

Among them were two journalists from the Dream FM radio station in Kairouan, who presented an ambitious project that CFI decided to fund. Over 18 days, Dream FM produced and broadcast adverts to raise awareness in the population encouraging them to vote, provided widespread coverage of the campaign through interviews with around 60 candidates and gave reports throughout the day of the vote on 6 October.

Thanks to the support from CFI, our programmes during the legislative election campaign created real momentum in the Kairouan region. We were the only media outlet relaying citizen expectations.
Mohamed Taïeb Chmengui, Director of Dream FM radio