Action-research to foster the employment inclusion of persons with disabilities in Tunisia

Title Independent living: organizing a professional training pathway for the employment inclusion of persons with disabilities in Tunisia
Location Governorates of Kasserine, Le Kef and Medenine, Tunisia
Duration 3 years
Project Leader  AIFO
Partners Italian Agency for Cooperation Development (AICS), Ministère des Affaires Sociales en Tunisie (MAS), Comité Comité général pour la promotion sociale (CGPS), Coperazione Paesi Emergenti (Co.P.E.)
Funding AICS – Italian Agency for Cooperation Development

Context

In Tunisia, persons with disabilities continue to face systemic challenges that hamper their full participation in society. Despite the nation’s progressive legislative framework advocating for the equal rights and inclusion of this segment, on-ground realities often paint a different picture. The barriers are not just physical but extend to social, educational, and employment fields.

The actual implementation of inclusive policies, especially in the realm of vocational training and employment, remains sporadic. The project “Pour Une Vie Indépendente” aims at bridging the gap between policy and practice, ensuring that persons with disabilities in Tunisia can lead dignified, independent lives.

The objective of the project is to ensure quality, fair, and inclusive education for persons with disabilities by establishing a comprehensive professional training process that fosters the employment inclusion in three Tunisian Governorates:  Kasserine, El Kef, and Medenine.

General Objective
The Inclusive Development Unit has been involved by AIFO to carry out two different in depth-studies:

  • the Accessibility Audit of Vocational Education and Training centres (VETs)
  • the Vocational Skills Self-Assessment (VSA).

Our Contribution
The Accessibility Audit for Vocational Education and Training Centres aims at providing valuable insights to foster recommendations for infrastructural improvements, the incorporation of innovative technologies, and the implementation of teaching methodologies to promote universal access to training courses, as well as to inform the future actions of the project.

For this study, the Inclusive Development Unit collaborated with local Researchers and Institutions in analysing the vocational training landscape, including educational institutions, work environments, and the broader business ecosystem. They studied obstacles and enablers that either hamper or bolster the access to Vocational Education and Training (VETs), as well as to the labour market, for young people with disabilities. The study delved also into the physical accessibility of VETs, the inclusivity of their training programs, and their alignment with local market needs.

To carry out this study, ARCO Researchers trained 3 local researchers with disabilities during a 2-session training. This approach is rooted in the Emancipatory Disability Research action-research methodology that aims at investigating the dynamics of social inclusion and exclusion from the perspective of people who experience specific vulnerabilities.

The findings of the Accessibility Audit will be the starting point for the co-creation of a structured path of training and job placement leading to the development of the Vocational Skills Self-Assessment (VSA). This tool, created and finalized through “training/co-creation” sessions, aims to be a key strategy in guiding internships and ensuring optimal job placements for participants.


Emancipatory Research, empowering social groups
at risk of marginalization