This project is fundedby the European Union

E VA LUAT ION R E P OR T 2 0 19

Executive summary
LebanonBeyond Radicalization: Youth in Lebanon Speak Up

dw-akademie.com

Background
This final evaluation assesses the joint
Lebanese-German project “Beyond Radicalization: Youth in Lebanon Speak Up!”,
which was implemented by DW Akademie
from March 2016 to February 2019 andfinanced by the European Union and theGerman Federal Foreign Office. The project aimed to strengthen young people’s
capacity in Media and Information Literacy (MIL). Parts of the project will be continued by a regional project funded by theGerman Federal Ministry for Economic
Cooperation and Development.
This is a unique pilot project in Lebanon,
due to its linkage between peace buildingand MIL. It applied a training of trainers
approach across several levels, involving
three local co-applicants and working
with additional public and private schools
as well as local civil society organizations(LCOs). The project coordinates with theMinistry of Education and Higher Edu-cation (MEHE) and joins forces with theMedia Digital Literacy Academy of Beirut(MDLAB), the Jesus and Mary School ( JMS)
and the Permanent Peace Movement(PPM) as co-applicants. Gender equality
among the target groups (both students
and stakeholder and trainers) is clearly
evident in the project indicators and ischaracteristic of the human rights-based
approach. The project was steered by a
DW Akademie project manager, basedin Lebanon, with backstopping from DW
Akademie headquarters in Germany, thestaff of the co-applicants, and the supportof international trainers.
The evaluation was conducted by an independent external evaluator from April toJune 2019. It applied both qualitative andquantitative methods, participative andstandardized approaches. Desk review,individual interviews, focus group interviews, the analysis of produced media andanswers to a standardized questionnaire
were all triangulated.
Results for each OECD/DAC criteria wereevaluated through a five-level approach:“very good” (goals fully achieved), “good”(goals generally achieved), “reasonable”(goals partially achieved) and “weak”(goals mostly not achieved) and “veryweak” (goals not achieved). Each result(effectivity) and objective (impact) was assessed following this five-level approach.
An indicator was achieved if there was acorresponding match to the original objectives. The achievement of the indicators represents the level of success of therespective result or objective.

Project Evaluation Results
Relevance was evaluated as “very good”:
Most stakeholders and target groupmembers confirmed the relevance of theproject. The main arguments for the importance of MIL capacities were the still
growing influence of social media andthe overall political situation in Lebanon – as a state dependent on external
subsidies, with decreasing development
indices, contradictory political communication, and the tensions within the population due to the country’s inability toadequately and inclusively approach thelong-standing refugee situation.
Trainers and youth confirmed that young
people do not find their preferred topics sufficiently and suitably represented in traditional media. This motivatesthem to seek alternative media, suchas social media. Social media is used byboth trustworthy journalists and political propaganda actors. For that reason,trustworthy journalistic information
unintentionally reinforces the publictrustworthiness of inappropriate, falseor hate messages. It therefore remains
crucial to enable young people to accessinformation of various content types andfrom various sources.
Efficiency was evaluated as “good”: Interms of resources, the program performed as planned. Among the three
co-applicants, the NGO PPM and theschool JMS, also provided strong support
for administrative tasks. Moreover, theproject cooperated with four additional
schools and LCOs. On the one hand, theprogram was active across different regions of Lebanon, which involves travel(logistical expenditures) and lost time(managing appointments). On the other
hand, the inclusion of several types oftarget group – such as LCOs, private andpublic schools including marginalizedgroups in all regions of Lebanon – was acentral part of the project’s concept.
The technical and intercultural experiences and capacities of the DW Akademie project manager, based in Lebanon,
whose background combines journalism
experience with regional knowledge
from Syria, Lebanon and Germany, wereof crucial importance for the project.

Effectivity and impact were evaluated as“good” to “very good”: The overall aim ofthe project was mostly achieved. At least
180 young people improved their capacities in identifying and critically assessing information at different levels, suchas in messenger group discussions, onsocial media and in traditional media as
well as interpersonal communication.
The project’s main approach was handson training in media production (mobilejournalism elements) as an instrument
to promote self-directed experiences on
how information can be investigated, interpreted and communicated. The UNESCO’s MIL steps provided the guidelines
for the structure of the trainings. However, the project was hampered by the distance to its partners, which were locatedin four different regions of the country.
Therefore, visits and workshops – at leastin Bekaa, Tripoli and Chihim – were sometimes time consuming to organize andimplement. Short-notice requests frompartners in the regions could not always
be responded to in time. The conceptual
approach of trainers from Beirut coaching local peer multipliers may not have

been sufficiently flexible nor entirely
suitable. The manual on MIL training canbe seen as a success story, since it combines training capacities with MIL andpeace building knowledge. Finally, it appears consistent that most of the youth
reached have a better idea of conflict
preventive behavior in regard to communications and most of these are enabled
to communicate investigated stories
on social media. Mutual understanding
between the various groups could havebeen strengthened more. The contribution of the project to civic participationand peace in Lebanon can be assumed,
although being of limited outreach.
Impact and sustainability were evaluated as “reasonable” to “good”: In particular, peer multipliers demonstrated a willingness to continue using their capacities
in the critical assessment of information
at all levels – personal, in their family orcommunity, and the media. However,there is little evidence that those capaci-ties would be used further in the context
of interactive media publications. The
participatory development of the training manual increased the commitmentof the co-applicants and therefore theoverall sustainability. Any impact at thelevel of the MEHE was very limited, due
to a lacking systematic approach to advocacy work. Such a goal may have been
too big for the program, since providing
political advice and engaging advocacy
would require different political networks, opportunities and approaches.
However, it can be presumed that theprogram did provide fresh ideas throughits regular reports to the ministry and its
close cooperation with the JMS. Although
MIL is not part of the official curricula, it
can be expected that some of the teachers reached by the project will integrateelements of MIL in their lesson plans, although less systematically than during
the project period.

Selected Recommendations
Develop a MIL trainer’s manual early inthe project that also includes inclusiveapproaches according to the “leave noone behind” principles, and is based on
the concept that gender, religion, local
social context, age and education shapethe different needs and capacities of target groups.
At an early stage of the project, implement a condensed training of trainers,
who are then each responsible for a defined region and/or topic. The creationof a network of local freelance trainers
could improve sustainability, if they canoffer their capacities to other development organizations or NGOs once theproject ends.

The geographic outreach of a projectshould be in balance with the budget andany logistical challenges. While diversity of genders, religious affiliations andsocial status can improve the success ofthe project – if used for intercultural exchange – a too ambitious geographicaloutreach can become a logistical challenge and put the quality of the outcome
at risk.

DW Akademie
is Deutsche Welle's center forinternational media development,journalism training and knowledgetransfer. Our projects strengthen thehuman right to freedom of expression
and unhindered access to information.
DW Akademie empowers people
worldwide to make independent
decisions based on reliable facts andconstructive dialogue.
DW Akademie is a strategic partnerof the German Federal Ministry
for Economic Cooperation andDevelopment. We also receive funding
from the Federal Foreign Office andthe European Union and are active inmore than 70 developing countries
and emerging economies.

CONTAC T
Dr. Laura Moore
Head Research and Evaluation
laura.moore@dw.com
Berlin, Germany

DWAkademie@dw_akademie
DWAkademie
dw.com/newsletter-registration
dw.com/mediadev

Project goals at the political level should
be defined based on coherent fact-finding and an analysis of the influence any
future program could have at the political level.

Text edited by DW Akademie.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union and the German Federal Foreign Office. The contents of thispublication are the sole responsibility of Deutsche Welle and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the German
Federal Foreign Office. The objective of the external evaluation is to provide a constructive assessment of the project results.