An American Council of Young Political Leaders (ACYPL) mission is visiting Tunisia from Saturday, December 8, through December 14 in an effort to promote mutual understanding between young leaders of Tunisia and the U.S. as well as strengthen bilateral relations.

The ACYPL mission is comprised of 8 delegates of whom half are Republicans and the other half Democrats.

The visit is occurring in partnership with the Tunisian American Young Professionals (TAYP) association. The aim is to introduce the U.S. delegation to the political, economic, and social circumstances that characterize Tunisia’s current political transition.

Among the delegates are Jason Isaac, a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives, Colmon Elridge, executive assistant to Kentucky’s Democrat governor, James Knowles, Republican mayor of the city of Ferguson in Missouri, Jaime Contreras, vice president of property services workers union SEIU’s local 32BJ, Holly Chisa, owner of contract lobbying firm HPC Advocacy, Amanda Reeve, a Republican member of the Arizona House of Representatives, and Kristin Rhebergen, ACYPL program director.

The ACYPL visit comes after the TAYP has recently launched its Tunisia Chapter, which seeks to implement necessary programs that help Tunisia’s transition period. Since its launch in the U.S. in 2011, TAYP has headed many events and programs to strengthen ties between the U.S. and Tunisia.

The Tunisia Chapter will seek to promote the export of Tunisian handicraft to the U.S. as well as attract U.S. investments in Tunisian startups, especially those founded by young entrepreneurs.

Correction: In an earlier version of this article, Pia Carusone, assistant secretary for public affairs at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, was included in the list of ACYPL delegates. She did not join ACYPL’s trip to Tunisia.