International Alert, Tunisia recruits a research consultants Retour vers les opportunités

1. Background

Alert mission in Tunisia aim to strengthen the social, economic and political inclusion of the interior regions and lower-income neighbourhoods and especially their young inhabitants.  Alert work since 2014 in the popular neighbourhoods of Ettadhamen and Douar Hicher focused on strengthening the participation of young people and it revealed the centrality of violence in the lives of young people.

Violence appears as a cross-cutting fact that unfolds within the family, at school, on the street, in youth centre, the bus stops, the cafes, the emergencies of the hospital …etc. It has many facets: individual, collective, domestic, institutional, sexual, social. It can be exercised against others, but also against oneself.

This consultancy comes within the framework a project that aims first to strengthen the democratic transition in the country, through the promotion of human rights, the fight against institutional, physical and symbolic violence as well as gender violence, perpetrated against young people in poor areas of Greater Tunis. It then aims to develop an awareness for the prevention of violence in urban and peri-urban areas.

2. Objective of the assignment

The objective of the assignment is to undertake a quantitative research and quantitative research that aim at the documentation of urban, institutional and gender violence including: violence in schools, sexual harassment in the public space, symbolic violence. To achieve a better knowledge of the forms of violence, of their actors, the extent of deployment, the places where they are practiced, their perceptions and their impact on young people. For which we will be need three experts: a demographist, a sociologist and a political scientist. The experts will undertake the following tasks:

• Participate in the formulation and validation of field research tools: quantitative questionnaire, semi-directive interview grid, sample, methodology for focus group;
• Participation in the formulation and adoption of the problematic, the research axes and the protocol of the research;
• Participation in the meetings of the team of researchers;
• Participate in the organization of an internal international research seminar
• Conduct (animation and recording) the 2 FG and write their reports;
• Conduct the 10 semi-structured interviews according to the chosen methodology;
• Participate in the recruitment and training of young field researchers;
• Participation in the field survey: interviews, supervision of the quantitative survey, facilitation of the focus groups,
• Participation in the drafting of the final report of the research
• Participation in dissemination activities of research results and lessons learned on forms of violence against young people (press conference, round table … etc).

3. Timing, duration and location

This is a research consultancy with a timeframe of 12 months in total.

The precise timing is to be discussed and agreed upon with the consultants respectively, particularly the dates for conducting in-depth interviews and focus group meetings.

Research: Mars – December 2018

Publication: December 2018–Mars 2019

The research will be conducted in two sites: the neighbourhoods of Douar Hicher and Ettadhamen (Grand-Tunis)

4. Methodology 

The research will consist of two components, quantitative and qualitative. It will focus on the population aged between 18 and 34 and will attempt to capture and analyze the institutional violence they suffer from. It will thus collect data on these facts (actors, places, jurisdictions, forms …) and apprehend the perceptions and reactions of young people facing institutional violence, urban violence, violence against women, violence in schools and in stadiums and the impact of these on the lifestyle of these same young people.

The research question(s) and methodology will be agreed upon after close consultation between the researches and International Alert. International Alert will make its previous research reports, lessons learnt and reports available to the researchers.

5. Deliverables

The consultants are required to deliver the following:

• Research methodologies and tools
• Focus groups and interviews reports
• Qualitative and qualitative research papers

All deliverables are to be presented to Alert for approval before implementation. All rules and regulations should be strictly applied to all outputs.

6. Key documents and sources of information to be consulted 

• Project reports and briefs
• Activity reports
• Other relevant reports
• Additional documents to be identified during the work