Inauguration of the first Master in Democratic Governance Democracy and Human Rights

On Monday, 9 February 2015, the European Inter-University Centre for Human Rights and Democratisation (EIUC) presented the Master in Democratic Governance Democracy and Human Rights in the MENA Region, the first master specialised in the field of democratic governance and human rights with a focus on the Arab world. The event was held at the Monastery of San Nicolò at the Lido, Venice.

The EIUC Secretary General, Florence Benoît-Rohmer, the DE.MA Programme Director, Professor Mohsine El Ahmadi as well as Prof. Mudar Kassis from Birzeit University, responsible of the first thematic section entitled Democracy and Rights, welcomed the students of this first edition of the DE.MA.

They highlighted the unique nature of this programme which signals an important cooperation among the universities of the DE.MA network: Cadi Ayyad University (Morocco), International University of Rabat (Morocco), Carthage University (Tunisia), Birzeit University (Palestine), Saint Joseph University (Lebanon), and Ca’ Foscari University (Italy).

In this sense, the DE.MA programme has the potential to grow in terms of academic institutions and students involved for the creation of high-profile experts in the fields of democratic governance and the protection of human rights.   For this reason, the “creation of high-profile experts in the fields of democratic governance and the protection of human rights in transitional countries in the Middle East and North Africa” was especially stressed.

During the opening, Prof. Mohsine El Ahmadi emphasized the “truly international environment thanks to the interconnection of different experts linked to the Global network of Universities”. The Masters’ international environment is evident in the wide range of our students’ different nationalities, while the unique mix between theory and practice is ensured by the combination of workshops, clusters and a second semester spent in one of the partner universities with Internship opportunities and the completion of a research project. 

The inauguration ended with a welcoming dinner where students shared a more relaxed atmosphere and time with their Programme Director and professors.

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