Noureddine Tabboubi … The Guardian of The Tent

Before the last Congress of the Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT), the name of Noureddine Tabboubi does not mean much to the general public. Many questions are raised about his affiliations and his political adherence among the political stakeholders and party actors. Perhaps because of the nature of the man, he is known to the trade unionists as a field man. He is a unionist who sticks to the rules, very careful to do his duty, both on the personal or professional levels. Noureddine Tabboubi is a hardworking person and…

Ibn Khaldoun-Senghor Translation Award bestowed to Tunisia

The Ibn Khaldoun-Senghor 2018 Translation Award was granted to the French-Arabic translation of Sylvie Patron’s social sciences work “Le Narrateur, Introduction à la théorie narrative” (“Narrator, Introduction to Narrative Theory”). The Arabic translation, entitled “Arraoui, Madkhal Ela Annadharya Assardya,” was published in 2017 by the Tunis Translation Centre. The announcement was made at a meeting of the jury of Ibn Khaldoun – Senghor award of literary and humanities translation from French to Arabic chaired by Tunisian Mohamed Mahjoub, the International Organisation of La Francophonie revealed. The jury met on October…

Moroccans among Highest Numbers of Legal Immigrants to France for Jobs

A 2017 report from OECD has listed Moroccans among the top immigrants who leave their homeland for France for economic reasons. The report, titled “The Recruitment of Immigrant Workers” from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) noted that out of a total of 258,900 permanent immigrants who entered France in 2016, 10.8 percent fell in the “economic” immigration category. In comparison, 38 percent came in the “family” immigration category. The report said that immigrants from non-European countries coming to France for economic reasons enter mainly from the US, Morocco, and Tunisia.  Intra-European…

Fundamental shift in drought management needed in Near East and North Africa region

FAO report calls for a more pro-active and long-term planning to become more resilient against droughts The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has called for a fundamental shift in the way drought is perceived and managed in the Near East and North Africa region. The agency said in a new report issued today that a more pro-active approach based on the principles of risk reduction is needed to build greater resilience to droughts. Even though drought is a familiar phenomenon in the region, over the past four decades, droughts have become…

Tunisia’s Municipal Elections : “Credible” vote despite some irregularities, according to European observers

For the first free legislative elections in the history of Tunisia that took place in 2014, the European Union dispatched an important observation mission. Also invited by the Independent Higher Electoral Commission (ISIE), a rather modest observation mission of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe were deployed for the Tunisian municipal elections on May 6, 2018. The European Union Election Observation Mission (EU-EOM) deployed 124 observers. They visited a total of 537 polling stations of 221 municipalities out of the country’s 300. A “significant…

Privatization of Tunisia’s Bankrupt Public-Sector Companies: A Necessary Evil

The Tunisian government finds itself compelled to start implementing its privatization plans and permanently eradicate the daunting influence of the labor unions.  Momentum is building round the government’s intention to privatize public-sector companies that are on the verge of bankruptcy or simply limit its ownership to a small share and relieve itself of their burden. The debate is heating up while the UGTT, the biggest labor union in the country, still refuses to support the government’s privatization plans, stating unconvincing reasons related to the country’s economic structure and to the…

Tunisia joins Morocco in electric car industry

Tunisia has stepped up its efforts to establish a large investment base in the automotive industry, assembly and installation in the region, materialising its partnership with the German “Leoni” group. Experts said that the frequent arrival of investments in Tunisia in the automotive industry, most recently the launch of the German Leoni Group, a new factory in the country, reflects the confidence of foreign investors in the business climate, which is starting to recover. The new unit will be dedicated to the production of electric vehicle components. Tunisia will join…

Tunisia explores new Silk Road to revive its economy

Tunisia is exploring the new Silk Road, which is expected to make it an investment hub in the region after officials revealed that the government is moving towards a strategic partnership with China before the end of current year. Tunisia’s rush to snatch a share of China’s investment in its new Silk Road strategy have accelerated in a move that experts say will boost the economic sectors in the country. Officials have unveiled plans for a clear strategy to link new partnerships with Beijing before the end of the year…

Monia Mazigh’s Hope Has Two Daughter

By Monia Mazigh, translated by Fred A. Reed Arachnide, 296 pages, $22.95 Monia Mazigh’s latest novel takes readers through a cycle of hope, uprising, despair and hope again in a story of two girls awakened by civil unrest. Hope Has Two Daughters opens in 1984: Nadia nears completing her lycée studies when the bread riots rock Tunisia and rent the fabric of Nadia’s stable but restrictive upbringing. Jump to 2010: Nadia’s daughter Lila, born and raised in Ottawa, reluctantly takes a gap year to learn Arabic in Tunis. Lila is…

Abdelaziz Bouteflika, Statesman in time of turmoil

Fears have come up again as regards president Abdelaziz Bouteflika‘s health state after the postponement of Geman Chancellor Angela Merkel’s visit to algeria on February, 20. Observers are accustomed to see the president hosting some of the pillars of the Algerian State or its guests either pale or sick. Whatever the fears of the future of Algeria, the sisterly country is ready for all the unexpected scenarios, because Algeria went through the toughest crisis and turbulences under Bouteflika’s leadership. The latter has spent the longest period in the presidency of…