The Lebanese population, despite its high level of education, does not focus on or learn about electoral processes or laws through regular channels such as schools and universities. This is mainly because the majority of the population falls in the loop clientelism, bribery and petty corruption, and bipartisanship dictated by a regime and sectarianism that have been ruling for ages.

However, we see the willingness to learn and raise awareness among the youth who are the drivers of change and innovation. For this reason, we focus on them in building capacities and knowledge on the electoral law especially that they were first time voters in the 2018 elections, or they will be in the coming parliamentary elections.

We conducted 9 training sessions in total for 350 youth in different schools and universities. Out of the 350, 199 were females and 151 were males.

The schools and universities that benefitted from the trainings are:

1.           February 23, 2021: Nadia Aoun High School

2.           March 1, 2021: Universite Saint Joseph (USJ)

3.           March 6, 2021: Notre Dame University (NDU)

4.           March 11, 2021: Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) – Kaslik

5.           March 12, 2021: Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) – Zahle

6.           March 19, 2021: Sawfar High School

7.           March 22, 2021: Sainte Famille Wadi Shahrour School

8.           March 26, 2021: Sagesse University

9.           April 7, 2021: Al Manar Modern School

The goal of the sessions was to strengthen the education within the youth communities on the electoral culture in Lebanon. Equipping them with knowledge and skills, the project aims to increase their participation as voters and/or candidates in any coming election. It also seeks to increase awareness on the sense of responsibility and commitment, and the importance of their own rights and roles.

With the positive feedback we received, KAS and Ad 4 Peace are excited to continue this project and reach as many young people as possible.