Strengthening Parliament Effectiveness and Capacity in Tunisia

First convened in 2014, Tunisia's 217-member Assembly of People's Representatives (ARP) is invested by the country's constitution with the duties of representing citizens, holding the executive branch accountable, and making law, including budget laws. The ARP has passed key legislation, such as the Access to Information Law, the Investment Code, and legislation against Gender Based Violence. However, Parliament's slow progress and difficulty in passing laws hinders the democratic transition, fuels public discontent, and causes voter confidence in the Parliament to decline. At least 66 percent of Tunisians feel that members of Parliament do not address the needs of the general public and less than 20 percent trust Parliament or understand its roles and procedures. Parliament members, many of whom have limited experience and staff resources to support their work, are failing to effectively engage voters and communicate their activities on draft laws and new measures.