Tunisia’s African footprint set to grow

Tunisia, historically known for the position of the city of Carthago, has a long tradition with trade. While in the last decades trade was strongly focused on Europa, the country has in the recent years recognised the potential of African markets and is thus currently focus more and more on trade on the continent.

To support this, Tunisia joined the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) in 2018 and ratified the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement in November 2020, to deepen its African integration.

In 2021, 70% of Tunisian exports went to the European Union while only 10% of its exports were to the African continent – even though it provides an export potential of up to USD 2.2 billion for Tunisia, according to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

How the GIZ is supporting the implementation of the AfCFTA in Tunisia

The Support to Trade Agreements with Africa project (implemented on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development) provides advice on negotiating and implementing intra-African trade agreements and is comprised by several funding projects, amongst other the AfCFTA programme. It is complemented by activities of bilateral cooperation in the field of trade with Africa in Tunisia.

The project assists public and private actors take advantage of the opportunities offered by these trade agreements.

Our work includes:

Providing advice on technical trade issues and facilitating coordination between ministries to finalise AfCFTA negotiations

Working with selected actors, such as Tunisian chambers, associations or customs authorities, to provide training on the agreements

Enabling private sector implementation of the AfCFTA. A special focus is on supporting women-led businesses and the involvement of Tunisian women in AfCFTA negotiations

Work done so far:

The website www.africatradeagreements.tn was launched in November 2020 and is becoming a key platform, providing information on African trade agreements ratified by Tunisia (namely the AfCFTA and COMESA agreements), with users exceeding 18 000

In May 2023, Tunisia actively started trade under the AfCFTA as one of the first 8 countries under Guided Trade Initiative. With more than 70 trade transactions/certificate of origin delivered until now, Tunisia is a frontrunner in implementing the agreement

The AfCFTA National Committee in Tunisia was created for coordination and strategic decision-making

As part of a public-private dialogue, a coalition was created to advocate for the private sector in negotiations. It is an important part of the AfCFTA National Committee, reinforcing the inclusion of the private sector in the process of integrating Tunisia into the AfCFTA

From summer 2024 onwards, Tunisian companies can apply online at their respective chamber of commerce for a COMESA/AfCFTA certificate of origin and the Tunisian customs are ready to facilitate trade under the AfCFTA

Finally, at the COMESA Tunisia Businesswomen Days conference in September 2022, 250 women entrepreneurs had the opportunity to meet women entrepreneurs from 11 sub-Saharan African countries

As part of the bilateral portfolio, more than 700 Tunisian companies have been directly supported with creating more business in Subsaharan-Africa

“Our vision is very clear: the African continent, thats the future for our external trade relations”.

– Lazhar Bennour, Director-General of Tunisia’s Ministry of Trade and Export Development

Facts and figures

Tunisia’s intra-African trade:

Tunisia’s intra-Africa trade (2021):
USD 3 billion

Mineral products (mostly petroleum products) account for more than 50% of Tunisia's intra-African import

Imports are mainly from North African countries (Algeria, Libya, Egypt and Morocco) where it enjoys preferential access

Our partners in Tunisia

The Ministry of Trade and Export Development

Chambers of Commerce and Industry

Tunisia’s customs authorities

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