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Tunisia

People line up in front of a bakery selling subsidized bread in Tunis, Tunisia, on Aug. 19, 2023.

Economics

Politics

The ongoing shortages risk eroding President Saied's popularity, triggering unrest, and delaying the disbursement of needed IMF funds.

Tunisia's Response to Bread Shortages Bode Ill for Its Economic Stability

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Low water levels are seen at the Sidi Salem Dam, Tunisia's largest embankment dam, on April 6, 2023. 

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Water and food shortages this summer will increase socioeconomic risks in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia, along with the impetus for more sustainable agricultural practices. 

After a Dry Spring, Northwest Africa Braces for Disruptive Crop Failures

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Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (2nd L) and Libya's Tripoli-based Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah (3rd L) attend an agreement-signing ceremony between Italian multinational oil and gas company Eni and the Libyan National Oil Corporation in Tripoli, Libya, on Jan. 28, 2023.

As Europe turns away from Russian energy, Italy positions itself as a natural gas conduit between the Continent and Africa.

With Energy Deals in Africa, Italy Positions Itself as Europe's Next Gas Hub

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Energy

After decades of isolation, Algiers plans to use its energy wealth to engage with the world, but its lack of economic diversification will hamper this process.

Algeria Emerges From Isolation, but Its Economy and Foreign Policy Will Limit Change

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Supporters of former Peruvian President Pedro Castillo clash with riot police in Lima on Dec. 11, 2022, during a demonstration demanding Castillo's release and early legislative elections. 

Military & Security

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Putin Visits Belarus, Peru Sets an Election Date Amid Protests

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French President Emmanuel Macron on Feb. 17, 2022, in Brussels.

The Weekly Rundown: Jokowi Visits Beijing, Macron Visits Sub-Saharan Africa

Demonstrators in Tunis, Tunisia, lift national flags during a protest on June 19, 2022, against President Kais Saied and the country’s upcoming constitutional referendum. 

President Saied's vision of a more centralized system of power, while less democratic, could ease the economic instability that has plagued the country since the 2011 revolution.

A New Constitution Returns Tunisia to Its Pre-Arab Spring Era

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Amid political instability and social unrest in Tunisia, the president has called for a constitutional referendum in July.

Essential Geopolitics: What to Know About Tunisia's Constitutional Referendum

Tunisian protesters raise national flags during a demonstration against their president in the capital of Tunis on March 20, 2022. 

The backlash against President Saied's move to extend his power grab could spur violent protests and delay needed economic reforms.

In Tunisia, the President's Dissolution of Parliament Will Deepen His Country's Crises

Security

The Difficulties of North African Reform

A gas station worker counts cash collected from customers in Cairo on June 29, 2017, after Egypt’s government slashed fuel subsidies. 

Broken Contracts in the Middle East

While it may stir controversy, Cairo’s push to scale back spending on electricity, water and bread subsidies is unlikely to spur widespread unrest.

Amid Rising Inflation, Egypt Mulls More Subsidy Cuts

Egypt's Uphill Battle

In this podcast, analyst at RANE Emily Hawthorne discusses how scheduled reforms may move Tunisia's political system from democracy back to autocracy.

Essential Geopolitics: Are Tunisia's Arab Spring Gains at Risk?

Protesters demonstrate against Tunisian President Kais Saied in the country’s capital of Tunis on Dec. 17, 2021 -- the 11th anniversary of the start of the 2011 revolution.

With parliament still suspended, the president’s planned political reforms could see Tunisia’s 10-year-old democracy slip back into autocracy. 

2022 Reforms Will Place Tunisia’s Arab Spring Gains on the Line

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Tunisia launched a new crackdown on migrant workers over the weekend, pushing up to 500 migrants out of the city of Sfax just south of the capital of Tunis, France 24 reported on Sept. 17. 

Tunisia, EU: Tunisia Continues Crackdown as EU Skepticism of Migrant Deal Remains

Tunisian police arrested the two top leaders of the opposition Ennahda party on Sept. 5, Al Jazeera reported the next day.

Tunisia: Police Arrest Ennahda Leaders in Sign of Growing Authoritarianism

Tunisian President Kais Saied fired Prime Minister Najla Bouden and appointed former central bank executive Ahmed al Hachani in her place on Aug. 1, Al Jazeera reported the next day.

Tunisia: Prime Minister Replaced, Likely Due to Economic Strain

The European Union and Tunisia agreed to boost economic relations and stem illegal immigration into Europe during a visit by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to Tunis, Politico reported on July 16.

EU, Tunisia: Migration Talks Lead to Financial Aid, but Obstacles Remain

Over the weekend of July 1-2, Tunisia's town of Redeyef in Gafsa governorate experienced small protests over shortages of bread and water, and the city of Sfax experienced clashes between sub-Saharan migrants and Tunisian residents, Tunisie Numerique reported on July 3.

Tunisia: Protests Over Shortages and Immigration Will Continue Throughout Summer

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is traveling to Tunisia on June 6 to meet Tunisian President Kais Saied in a bid to mediate a breakthrough in stalled talks between his government and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on a $1.9 billion loan and to discuss bilateral cooperation in areas such as in energy, investments and illegal migration, Bloomberg reported June 5.

Italy, Tunisia: Italian PM Meloni in Tunis in Bid to Unblock Stalled IMF Talks

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The energy ministries of Austria, Germany and Italy signed a joint letter supporting the designation of a hydrogen pipeline called the "SouthH2 Corridor" as a European Union Project of Common Interest, which would enable the project to receive public funds and fast-tracked permits, Reuters reported on May 9.

EU: Push for Hydrogen Pipeline Will Aid Bloc's Energy Transition

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Syria's state media said it would reopen its embassy in Tunisia after Tunis appointed a new ambassador to Syria following over 10 years of diplomatic estrangement, AP reported on April 12.

Syria, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia: Countries Restore Diplomatic Ties

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A view of the Register in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

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Covering an area that spans the entire width of the continent beginning at the Sahara Desert and ending at the southernmost tip of South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to countless cultures, languages, religions, plants, animals and natural resources.

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Mir Castle in the Minsk region of Belarus.

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A horse grazes in front of Kara-Kul lake in the Chon-Ak-Suu valley, 300 kilometers southeast of Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

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Tunisia sits at the northwest corner of North Africa, and is divided geographically between its temperate, mountainous northern coastline, its warm, central plains, and its hot, dry Sahara Desert interior. To maintain its prosperity, Tunisia's primary geographic challenges are to manage the economic divide between its interior and coastline, while also defending the country's geographically open borders and trade routes with Europe. Though it lacks major natural resources, agriculture has flourished for centuries in Tunisia's mountainous north.    Tunisia's location on the Mediterranean is a double-edged sword. It provides it with access to trade routes while also opening it up to attacks from powerful states. Though the country's interior is much more defensible, the coastal region produces 85% of Tunisia's gross domestic product. Its capital and largest city, Tunis, sits on the Bay of Tunis where a natural harbor facilitates trade, but provides an easy landing point for invasion.     Beginning with the Roman conquest of Carthage in the second century B.C., Tunisia was under foreign occupation for much of its history. Its last occupation ended in 1956 when French colonization ceased, but trouble on Tunisia's southern border persists today.     To maintain prosperity, Tunisia needs access to European trade routes across the Mediterranean Sea. Doing so requires close relationships with powers strong enough to keep those routes open, and Tunisia has thus remained close with its powerful former colonizer, France. Because Tunisia is too weak to control or influence neighboring Algeria or Libya, it chooses to focus on maintaining its trade routes to Europe.

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SITUATION REPORTS

Tunisia, EU: Tunisia Continues Crackdown as EU Skepticism of Migrant Deal Remains

Tunisia: Police Arrest Ennahda Leaders in Sign of Growing Authoritarianism

Tunisia: Prime Minister Replaced, Likely Due to Economic Strain

EU, Tunisia: Migration Talks Lead to Financial Aid, but Obstacles Remain

Tunisia: Protests Over Shortages and Immigration Will Continue Throughout Summer

Italy, Tunisia: Italian PM Meloni in Tunis in Bid to Unblock Stalled IMF Talks

EU: Push for Hydrogen Pipeline Will Aid Bloc's Energy Transition

Syria, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia: Countries Restore Diplomatic Ties

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