Tunisia Set To Become A ‘Startup Nation’ – Parliament Passes the Startup Act

After two years of deliberation, the Tunisian Parliament passed the ‘Startup Act’ early this month. The Act was formulated by keeping the ecosystem involved and is touted to set the country on the path of becoming a startup nation. Definition of a startup is chalked out clearly which states that the company should not have existed for eight years. Among other mandates, the number of its employees should not exceed 100, more than two-thirds of its shareholders should be founders and preference would be given to startups that leverage technology. The new rule…

EIB invests more than €1.7bn in Stockholm metro and new trains for Lombardy and Tunisia

The European Investment Bank (EIB), the EU’s non-profit lending institution, has announced an investment of more than €1.7 billion on improved rail transport in Europe and North Africa. As part of a wider package of new financing, EIB is set to invest €788 million to support the construction of three Stockholm metro extensions totalling 19.6km, including 11 new underground stations. Around €612 million will be spent to support the acquisition of 161 new trains for Italy’s Lombardy region and €45 million on 18 new trains for the Tunis-Goulette-Marsa line in Tunisia. The announcement was…

Olive oil production to hit new record in the 2017-18 season in Tunisia

Olive oil production will reach a new record during the 2017-18 season, in Tunisia. The national oil office (ONH) indicated that the oilseed’s volume is expected to be 280, 000 tonnes during the period under review, well beyond the 5-year average of 190, 000 tonnes and the International Olive Oil Council’s initial estimates of 220, 000 tonnes Shipments should pursue the momentum recorded at the beginning of this year, reaching 200,000 tonnes by the end of the season, next October. For the record, at the end of March, Tunisia exported 110,…

Tunisia’s “Startup Act” could show other African governments how to support tech ecosystems

The success story of local tech ecosystems across Africa has provided a positive narrative over the past decade. But much of this success has come despite the lack of an enabling environment or reformist legislation. Increasingly, however, governments across the continent are beginning to focus more on how to boost fledgling ecosystems. With a newly passed Startup Act (in Arabic)—a law which sets out government’s policies for startup growth—Tunisia appears to be taking the lead in this regard. The law has come after two years of deliberations with legislators engaging entrepreneurs, civil society, and…

UTICA looks to renew key sectors in Tunisia

“I believe that highlighting the successes of successful domestic and foreign companies is one of the best communication tools to be exercised, ” said Majoul. “A number of recent rankings, some of which were unfair to Tunisia, have had a negative impact on the image of our country, which forces us all to make the necessary efforts to change this image and to define the benefits of our country, ” says Samir Majoul, President of UTICA. In his allocation during the opening of the national conference on ” Industry and…

Tourism revenue in Tunisia up 28% to April 10

European tourists up 51.4% in first quarter Tourism revenue in Tunisia rose by 28% between January 1 and April 10 over the same period in 2017, according to government data released on Friday. This year so far income from tourism has amounted to 530.8 million Tunisian dinars, compared to 413.6 million in the equivalent period last year. Likewise, the number of nights spent in hotels by non-residents rose by 36.9% in the first quarter over the first three months of 2017. European tourists have risen by 51.4% and those from…

Tunisia: food trade balance records surplus of 222 MD (Q1

Tunisia’s food trade balance recorded a surplus of 222.6 million dinars (MD) in the 1st quarter of 2018 (1st Q), against a deficit of 384 MD in the 1st Q of 2017, due to the doubling of food exports of olive oil, according to data released recently by the Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries Ministry. Over the same period, the import coverage rate by exports edged up by 117%, compared to 67.1% in 2017. This growth is due to the increase in the value of food exports by 95.6%, against…

IMF: Opposite trends continue to characterize the Tunisian economy in early 2018

Economic growth is picking up, but risks to macroeconomic stability have also risen. Strong policy and reform implementation will lower risks to the budget and decelerate inflation. Discussions on the near-term economic reform priorities will continue in Washington during the IMF’s Spring Meetings from April 20–22. An International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff team, led by Bjoern Rother, visited Tunisia from April 4–11 to discuss the country’s recent economic developments and the authorities’ policy plans under Tunisia’s economic reform program supported by a four-year IMF Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement (see Press…

Tunisia hopes to regain its rank of leading exporter to EU

Tunisia is able to recover its position as the leading south Mediterranean exporter to Europe by 2020, said Prime Minister Youssef Chahed on Thursday. At a national conference on Tunisian industry and small and medium-sized enterprises, Chahed said that since January 2017, Tunisian industrial exports have exceeded 31 billion dinars (12.76 billion U.S. dolllars). The country’s exports are expected to exceed 47 billion dinars (19.35 billion dollars) in 2020. “We are able to fulfill this objective thanks to measures the government has taken, in addition to the recovery of the national…

Tunisia wants to enter into a MoU with India in field of Mining and Geology

A specialized Training Institute of GSI can train the professionals of Tunisia A meeting between Mr.Hachem Hemidi, Secretary of State (MoS Rank), Ministry of Energy, Mines and Renewable Energy of Tunisia with Hon’ble Union Minister of Mines held in Delhi. During the meeting, Hon’ble Union Minister of Mines highlighted that India has huge geological potential and a wide variety of minerals of India. He also brought out that the MMDR ACT, which governs the mineral sector, was amended in January 2015. This amendment brought in transparency in the grant of mineral…