MOMKIN: Youth, Art, and Culture for Peacebuilding in Tunisia
As part of NOVACT’s work in Tunisia, the MOMKIN program has established itself as a key initiative for preventing violent conflicts and promoting social cohesion in the country, placing youth and their environment at the center of the intervention.
Through art and culture, MOMKIN aims to strengthen capacities, foster youth leadership, and create spaces for violence prevention in communities at risk of social exclusion.
A Participatory Process for Ownership and Lasting Impact
Since its launch, MOMKIN has embraced a participatory approach that ensures the program’s ownership by its beneficiaries and the distribution of responsibilities among all involved actors. This process has included initial meetings to introduce the project, cooperation agreements with local stakeholders, intensive training, and coordination spaces at local, national, and international levels.
Training and Artistic Production: Tools for Change
The program has developed a solid training framework, targeting both young beneficiaries and staff members of intervention centers.
- Youth: Courses have been offered in artistic disciplines such as short film creation, forum theater, radio production, and journalism, along with training in cross-cutting skills such as self-management, self-esteem, and debate.
- Youth center professionals: They have received more than 70 hours of training in stress management, nonviolent communication, and artistic mediation methodologies, ensuring a sustainable impact on youth support.
As a result of these training sessions, young participants have produced various artistic pieces that consolidate their acquired knowledge and reinforce their role as agents of social change.
Consolidation of Prevention Spaces and Youth Leadership
One of MOMKIN’s main achievements has been the creation of youth civic clubs in the eight intervention centers of the program. These youth-led spaces use cultural tools to promote values of peace and human rights, establishing a model of violence prevention driven by youth participation.
Festival and Seminar: Meeting Points for Advocacy
The program has culminated in a festival and a seminar designed to showcase young people’s work and strengthen the initiative’s sustainability:
- MOMKIN Festival: On February 2 and 3, 130 young people and 40 representatives from civil society and institutions gather for workshops and plenary sessions, including theater performances and screenings of short films produced by the youth participating in the project.
- Advocacy Seminar: On February 4, the advocacy seminar takes place with over 250 attendees, serving as a platform for young people to present their proposals to institutional representatives and international organizations, with the aim of ensuring continuity and strengthening such initiatives.
Looking to the Future: Continuity with KIYADA
MOMKIN is not an isolated project but part of a long-term strategy. The new phase, named KIYADA, aims to consolidate the role of Tunisian youth in preventing violent conflicts, strengthen the network of civic clubs, and promote youth leadership in community awareness and political dialogue processes.
With the support of Tunisian organizations such as Mass’Art, Joussour for Citizenship, and ADO+, along with backing from FSUB and the University of Carthage, and funding from AECID and ACCD, MOMKIN continues to expand its impact, demonstrating that art and culture are powerful tools for peacebuilding.