Agricultural lands make up 62% of Tunisia’s total surface area. But every year, over 20 million hectares of these lands disappear due to erosion and urbanization. The social and environmental consequences of this dual phenomenon are irreversible.
EU-Tunisia: Why the Dutch were compelled to strike a deal with an autocrat
On July 16, the European Commission signed a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ with Tunisia, granting the country millions of euros to prevent migrants and refugees from crossing the Mediterranean to seek shelter in Europe. But why did the Dutch prime minister play a pioneering role in the conclusion of the Tunisia deal, if only a small proportion of the migrants along this route travel on to the Netherlands? This analysis examines how the Dutch anti-migration policy became self-evident.
Work in Tunisia: Regularizing the status of undocumented immigrants
Although they are accused of stealing jobs from Tunisians, undocumented immigrants nevertheless respond to a labor shortage across a number sectors that are spurned by the local workforce. Regularizing the status of foreign workers in Tunisia would not only put an end to the scapegoating and forceful expulsion endured by immigrants, but would also stem the exploitation to which they are exposed.
The IMF and the West in Tunisia: Saied, a fish caught in the net?
The question is nothing short of provocative in light of the president’s ever nationalist discourse. But the facts remain. As it activates certain elements of policies recommended by the IMF, Carthage appears to be settling into place beneath the wing of its friends to the West.
Nawaat Magazine: Minister of culture troubled by special issue cover
«Photo or caricature?» However burning the question may be, we will not answer it in the present editorial. Instead, we will leave it to the experts at the Ministry of Culture to weigh the gravity of our «error». What we will acknowledge here is the significance of the incident, an accurate and barefaced representation of the extraordinary (mis)adventures that unfold under Saied’s New Order.
President Saied’s Health: From silence to sound bite
Never has the health of a Tunisian president been the center of so much public attention. The spotlight was on Kais Saied’s physical condition from the moment he announced his candidacy for president. After refraining from commenting on rumors relating to his mental health, the president responded for the first time to remarks about his absence from the end of March through early April 2023.
Administrative purge: a new current in the regime’s authoritarian drift
What do the designation of a new prime minister and the public admonition of national television’s CEO have in common? Both highlight President Kais Saied’s new priority to « cleanse » the administration. Envisioned as a means to further consolidate the regime’s grip on power, the planned purge may in fact undermine the fragile web of alliances that is holding it together.
Under the Regime of Scarcity
Over the past year, Tunisians have struggled to keep their pantries stocked. Necessities, especially staple food items, are often missing from the shelves of local grocery stores and supermarkets. These ongoing shortages have more than one cause.
For Tunisian women and their non-Muslim fiancés, marriage remains a stroke of luck
In 2017, President Beji Caid Essebsi rescinded a circular from 1973 prohibiting civil registrars from establishing marriage contracts between Tunisian women—inherently presumed to be Muslim—and non-Muslim men. Lauded by feminists, the decision has ultimately proved ineffective as notaries and municipal authorities continue to apply Islamic sharia in this context.
Innawaation: 7th Call for projects – creative media projects incubator
Innawaation is a creative media projects incubator structured around a series of residencies and events. These collaborations will take place during sessions that span 3 to 6 months of work.
Dreams and disillusionment: Tunisian migrants in Italy
Each year, thousands of Tunisians attempt the perilous journey across the Mediterranean in order to reach Italy. But dreams of an Italian promised land fall away as migrants are faced with a harsh reality. Once ashore, Tunisian workers enter into a life of precarity.
Subsidies for basic goods: The presidency and government scrap it out
After having left government to the task of establishing a program to eliminate subsidies for basic goods, President Kais Saied has switched gears.
Tunisia: Kais Saied tightens his grip on civil society
A number of NGOs have expressed indignation at the recent humanitarian crisis involving migrants driven out of Sfax, and the government is not impressed. Associations openly critical of authorities are blaring on the president’s radar, as acts of intimidation targeting certain organizations portend an open war against civil society’s dissenting voices.
Against the anti-migrant and anti-Black policies of the EU and Tunisia
An open letter from 379 researchers and members of civil society from the Global South and the Global North against the “Memorandum of Understanding on a Strategic and Comprehensive Partnership between the European Union (EU) and Tunisia” and against the EU’s border externalisation policies.
Najla Bouden: Poor economic record, outstanding support for repression
Her departure from the Kasbah has been as discreet as her arrival. A late night post on the Office of the President’s Facebook page informed Tunisians of Prime Minister Najla Bouden’s dismissal from office. After less than two years serving at the head of government, this unassuming university professor is leaving the field with an underwhelming track record in confronting socioeconomic issues. What is remarkable about Bouden’s term is how she stood by an increasingly authoritarian regime.
Djerba: Restoring «fsegui», a response to water scarcity
For years now, daily life on the island of Djerba has been punctuated by water cuts. In response to global warming and water stress, the Association Jlij for the Marine Environment has invested in the restoration of fsegui, public water cisterns dating from the colonial era.
Hundreds march in Tunis to denounce increasing violence against migrants
Hundreds of people marched yesterday in Tunisia in support of migrants in the country, following the death of a Tunisian man in an altercation with migrants. The march, organized by several associations, aimed to denounce the increasing violence, deportations, and discrimination faced by migrants. The protesters chanted slogans against racism and expressed solidarity with Sub-Saharan migrants present in Tunisia.
Selective Immigration: Tunisia loses its skilled workforce to broader horizons
Nurses, doctors, engineers, university students, restaurateurs…are leaving Tunisia in droves. The country is losing its skilled workforce to Europe and the Gulf countries, with no end to the exodus in sight.
