Map of Tunisia | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
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Background: Rivalry between French and Italian interests in Tunisia culminated in a French invasion in 1881 and the creation of a protectorate. Agitation for independence in the decades following World War I was finally successful in convincing the French to recognize Tunisia as an independent state in 1956. The country's first president, Habib BOURGUIBA, established a strict one-party state. He dominated the country for 31 years, repressing Islamic fundamentalism and establishing rights for women unmatched by any other Arab nation. In November 1987, BOURGUIBA was removed from office and replaced by Zine el Abidine BEN ALI in a bloodless coup. Street protests that began in Tunis in December 2010 over high unemployment, corruption, widespread poverty, and high food prices escalated in January 2011, culminating in rioting that led to hundreds of deaths. On 14 January 2011, the same day BEN ALI dismissed the government, he fled the country, and by late January 2011, a 'national unity government' was formed. Elections for the new Constituent Assembly were held in late October 2011, and in December, it elected human rights activist Moncef MARZOUKI as interim president. The Assembly began drafting a new constitution in February 2012 and, after several iterations and a months-long political crisis that stalled the transition, ratified the document in January 2014. Parliamentary and presidential elections for a permanent government were held at the end of 2014. Beji CAID ESSEBSI was elected as the first president under the country's new constitution. CAID ESSEBSI’s term, as well as that of Tunisia’s 217-member Parliament, expires in 2019.


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Location: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Algeria and Libya

Geographic coordinates: 34 00 N, 9 00 E

Map reference: Africa

Area
Total: 163,610 km²
Land: 155,360 km²
Water: 8,250 km²
Rank: 94
Comparative: slightly larger than Georgia

Land boundaries
Total: 1495 km
Border countries: (2) Algeria 1034 km; , Libya 461 km

Coastline: 1148 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm

Climate: temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers; desert in south

Terrain: mountains in north; hot, dry central plain; semiarid south merges into the Sahara

Elevation
Mean elevation: 246 m
Elevation extremes: -17 m
Note: lowest point: Shatt al Gharsah

Natural resources: petroleum, phosphates, iron ore, lead, zinc, salt

Land use
Agricultural land: 64.8% (2011 est.)
Forest: 6.6% (2011 est.)
Other: 28.6% (2011 est.)

Irrigated land: 4,590 km² (2012)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: flooding; earthquakes; droughts

Geography
Note: strategic location in central Mediterranean; Malta and Tunisia are discussing the commercial exploitation of the continental shelf between their countries, particularly for oil exploration


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Population
Distribution: the overwhelming majority of the population is located in the northern half of the country; the south remains largely underpopulated: 11,516,189 (July 2018 est.)
Rank: 78
Growth rate: 0.95% (2018 est.)
Growth rate rank: 116
Below poverty line: 15.5% (2010 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Tunisian(s)
Adjective: Tunisian

Ethnic groups: Arab 98%, European 1%, Jewish and other 1%

Languages:

Religions: Muslim (official; Sunni) 99.1%, other (includes Christian, Jewish, Shia Muslim, and Baha'i) 1%

Demographic profile: The Tunisian Government took steps in the 1960s to decrease population growth and gender inequality in order to improve socioeconomic development. Through its introduction of a national family planning program (the first in Africa) and by raising the legal age of marriage, Tunisia rapidly reduced its total fertility rate from about 7 children per woman in 1960 to 2 today. Unlike many of its North African and Middle Eastern neighbors, Tunisia will soon be shifting from being a youth-bulge country to having a transitional age structure, characterized by lower fertility and mortality rates, a slower population growth rate, a rising median age, and a longer average life expectancy.Currently, the sizable young working-age population is straining Tunisia’s labor market and education and health care systems. Persistent high unemployment among Tunisia’s growing workforce, particularly its increasing number of university graduates and women, was a key factor in the uprisings that led to the overthrow of the BEN ALI regime in 2011. In the near term, Tunisia’s large number of jobless young, working-age adults; deficiencies in primary and secondary education; and the ongoing lack of job creation and skills mismatches could contribute to future unrest. In the longer term, a sustained low fertility rate will shrink future youth cohorts and alleviate demographic pressure on Tunisia’s labor market, but employment and education hurdles will still need to be addressed.Tunisia has a history of labor emigration. In the 1960s, workers migrated to European countries to escape poor economic conditions and to fill Europe’s need for low-skilled labor in construction and manufacturing. The Tunisian Government signed bilateral labor agreements with France, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, and the Netherlands, with the expectation that Tunisian workers would eventually return home. At the same time, growing numbers of Tunisians headed to Libya, often illegally, to work in the expanding oil industry. In the mid-1970s, with European countries beginning to restrict immigration and Tunisian-Libyan tensions brewing, Tunisian economic migrants turned toward the Gulf countries. After mass expulsions from Libya in 1983, Tunisian migrants increasingly sought family reunification in Europe or moved illegally to southern Europe, while Tunisia itself developed into a transit point for sub-Saharan migrants heading to Europe.Following the ousting of BEN ALI in 2011, the illegal migration of unemployed Tunisian youths to Italy and onward to France soared into the tens of thousands. Thousands more Tunisian and foreign workers escaping civil war in Libya flooded into Tunisia and joined the exodus. A readmission agreement signed by Italy and Tunisia in April 2011 helped stem the outflow, leaving Tunisia and international organizations to repatriate, resettle, or accommodate some 1 million Libyans and third-country nationals.

Age structure
0-14 years: 25.25% (male 1,502,655 /female 1,405,310)
15-24 years: 13.53% (male 787,178 /female 770,929)
25-54 years: 43.25% (male 2,426,011 /female 2,554,253)
55-64 years: 9.75% (male 560,233 /female 562,436)
65 years and over: 8.22% (male 448,784 /female 498,400) (2018 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 45.6 (2015 est.)
Youth dependency ratio: 34.5 (2015 est.)
Elderly dependency ratio: 11.1 (2015 est.)
Potential support ratio: 9 (2015 est.)

Median age
Total: 32 years
Male: 31.3 years
Female: 32.5 years (2018 est.)
Rank: 106

Population growth rate: 0.95% (2018 est.)
Rank: 116

Birth rate: 17.4 births/1000 population (2018 est.)
Rank: 103

Death rate: 6.4 deaths/1000 population (2018 est.)
Rank: 148

Net migration rate: -1.7 migrant(s)/1000 population (2017 est.)
Rank: 153

Population distribution: the overwhelming majority of the population is located in the northern half of the country; the south remains largely underpopulated

Urbanization
Urban population: 68.9% of total population
Note: (2015-20 est.)
Rate of urbanization: 1.53% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: 2.291 million TUNIS (capital) (2018)

Environment
Current issues: toxic and hazardous waste disposal is ineffective and poses health risks; water pollution from raw sewage; limited natural freshwater resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
International agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female (2017 est.)
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female (2017 est.)
15-24 years: 1.01 male(s)/female (2017 est.)
25-54 years: 0.94 male(s)/female (2017 est.)
55-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female (2017 est.)
65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female (2017 est.)
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 11.7 deaths/1000 live births (2018 est.)
Male: 12.8 deaths/1000 live births (2018 est.)
Female: 10.5 deaths/1000 live births (2018 est.)
Rank: 123

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 75.9 years (2018 est.)
Male: 74.3 years (2018 est.)
Female: 77.6 years (2018 est.)
Rank: 99

Total fertility rate: 2.17 children born/woman (2018 est.)
Rank: 96

Contraceptive prevalence rate: 62.5% (2011/12)

Drinking water source
Urban: 0% of population
Rural: 6.8% of population
Total: 2.3% of population (2015 est.)

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 1.29 physicians/1000 population (2015)

Hospital bed density: 2.2 beds/1000 population (2014)

Sanitation facility access
Urban: 2.6% of population (2015 est.)
Rural: 20.2% of population (2015 est.)
Total: 8.4% of population (2015 est.)

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate note: <.1% (2017 est.)
People living with hivaids: 3,000 (2017 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 122
Deaths note: <200 (2017 est.)

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 26.9% (2016)
Rank: 40

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight: 2.3% (2012)
Rank: 109

Education expenditures: 6.6% of GDP (2015)
Rank: 25

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2015 est.)
Total population: 81.8% (2015 est.)
Male: 89.6% (2015 est.)
Female: 74.2% (2015 est.)

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 15 years (2015)
Date: (2015) (2015)

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of Tunisia
Conventional short form: Tunisia
Local long form: Al Jumhuriyah at Tunisiyah
Local short form: Tunis
Etymology: the country name derives from the capital city of Tunis

Government type: parliamentary republic

Capital
Name: Tunis
Geographic coordinates: 36 48 N, 10 11 E
Time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Administrative divisions: 24 governorates (wilayat, singular - wilayah); Beja (Bajah), Ben Arous (Bin 'Arus), Bizerte (Banzart), Gabes (Qabis), Gafsa (Qafsah), Jendouba (Jundubah), Kairouan (Al Qayrawan), Kasserine (Al Qasrayn), Kebili (Qibili), Kef (Al Kaf), L'Ariana (Aryanah), Mahdia (Al Mahdiyah), Manouba (Manubah), Medenine (Madanin), Monastir (Al Munastir), Nabeul (Nabul), Sfax (Safaqis), Sidi Bouzid (Sidi Bu Zayd), Siliana (Silyanah), Sousse (Susah), Tataouine (Tatawin), Tozeur (Tawzar), Tunis, Zaghouan (Zaghwan)

Dependent areas

Independence: 20 March 1956 (from France)

National holiday: Independence Day, 20 March (1956)Revolution and Youth Day, 14 January (2011)

Constitution
History: several previous; latest approved by Constituent Assembly 26 January 2014, signed by the president, prime minister, and Constituent Assembly speaker 27 January 2014 (2017)
Amendments: proposed by the president of the republic or by one-third of members of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People; following review by the Constitutional Court, approval to proceed requires an absolute majority vote by the Assembly and final passage requires a two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly; the president can opt to submit an amendment to a referendum, which requires an absolute majority of votes cast for passage (2017)

Legal system: mixed legal system of civil law, based on the French civil code and Islamic law; some judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court in joint session

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Tunisia
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal except for active government security forces (including the police and the military), people with mental disabilities, people who have served more than three months in prison (criminal cases only), and people given a suspended sentence of more than six months

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Beji CAID ESSEBSI (since 31 December 2014)
Head of government: Prime Minister Youssef CHAHED (since 27 August 2016)
Cabinet: selected by the prime minister and approved by the Assembly of the Representatives of the People
Electionsappointments: president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 23 November with a runoff on 21 December 2014 (next to be held in 2019); following legislative elections, the prime minister is selected by the majority party or majority coalition and appointed by the president
Election results: Beji CAID ESSEBSI elected president in second round; percent of vote - Beji CAID ESSEBSI (Call for Tunisia Party) 55.7%, Moncef MARZOUKI (CPR) 44.3%

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Assembly of the Representatives of the People or Majlis Nuwwab ash-Shab (Assemblee des representants du peuple) (217 seats; 199 members directly elected in Tunisian multi-seat constituencies and 18 members in multi-seat constituencies abroad by party-list proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)
Elections: initial election held on 26 October 2014 (next to be held in 2019)
Election results: percent of vote by party - Call for Tunisia 37.6%, Ennahdha 27.8%, UPL 4.1%, Popular Front 3.6%, Afek Tounes 3%, CPR 2.1%, other 21.8%; seats by party - Call to Tunisia 86, Nahda 69, UPL 16, Popular Front 15, Afek Tounes 8, CPR 4, other 17, independent 2; composition - men 149, women 68, percent of women 31.3%: Note: in August 2018, Prime Minister CHAHED left the Nidaa Tounes party and began building the 'National Coalition' bloc, partnering with the al-Nadha party to form a parliamentary majority; percent of vote by party as of November 2018 - al-Nadha 30.9%, Nidaa Tounes 21.2%, National Coalition 20.3%, Popular Front 6.9%, Machrou Tounes' Al-Horrah Bloc 6.9%, Democratic Bloc 5.5%, Loyalty to the Nation Bloc 5.1%, independent 3.2%; seats by party as of November 2018 - al-Nadha 67, Nidaa Tounes 46, National Coalition 44, Popular Front 15, Machrou Tounes' Al-Horrah Bloc 15, Democratic Bloc 12, Loyalty to the Nation Bloc 11, indpendent 7

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Court of Cassation or Cour de Cassation (organized into 1 civil and 3 criminal chambers); Constitutional Court (established in 2014, but remained vacant as of late 2018)
Judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges nominated by the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), an independent 4-part body consisting mainly of elected judges and the remainder legal specialists; judge tenure based on terms of appointment; Constitutional Court NA
Subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; administrative courts; Court of Audit; Housing Court; courts of first instance; lower district courts; military courts: note: the new Tunisian constitution of January 2014 called for the creation of a constitutional court by the end of 2015, but as of November 2018, the court had not been appointed; the court will consist of 12 members - 4 each appointed by the president, SJC, and the Chamber of the People's Deputies (parliament); members will serve 9-year terms with one-third of the membership renewed every 3 years

Political parties and leaders: Afek Tounes [Yassine BRAHIM]Al Badil Al-Tounisi (The Tunisian Alternative) [Mehdi JOMAA]Call for Tunisia (Nidaa Tounes) [Hafedh CAID ESSEBSI]Congress for the Republic or CPR [Imed DAIMI]Current of Love [Hachemi HAMDI] (formerly the Popular Petition party)Democratic Alliance Party [Mohamed HAMDI]Democratic Current [Mohamed ABBOU]Democratic Patriots' Unified Party [Zied LAKHDHAR]Free Patriotic Union or UPL (Union patriotique libre) [Slim RIAHI]Green Tunisia Party [Abdelkader ZITOUNI]Machrou Tounes (Tunisia Project) [Mohsen MARZOUK]Movement of Socialist Democrats or MDS [Ahmed KHASKHOUSSI]Nahda Movement (The Renaissance) [Rachid GHANNOUCHI]National Destourian Initiative or El Moubadra [Kamel MORJANE]Party of the Democratic Arab Vanguard [Ahmed JEDDICK, Kheireddine SOUABNI]People's Movement [Zouheir MAGHZAOUI]Popular Front (coalition includes Democratic Patriots' Unified Party, Workers' Party, Green Tunisia, Tunisian Ba'ath Movement, and Party of the Democratic Arab Vanguard)Republican Party [Maya JRIBI]Tunisian Ba'ath Movement [OMAR Othman BELHADJ]Tunisia First (Tunis Awlan) [Ridha BELHAJ]Workers' Party [Hamma HAMMAMI]

International organization participation: ABEDA, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AMU, AU, BSEC (observer), CAEU, CD, EBRD, FAO, G-11, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS, MIGA, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, OPCW, OSCE (partner), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Faycal GOUIA (since 18 May 2015)
In the us chancery: 1515 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,005
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 862-1850
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 862-1858
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel H. RUBINSTEIN (since 26 October 2015)
From the us embassy: Zone Nord-Est des Berges du Lac Nord de Tunis 1053
From the us mailing address: Zone Nord-Est des Berges du Lac Nord de Tunis 1053
From the us telephone: [216] 71 107-000
From the us FAX: [216] 71 107-090

Flag description:

National symbols: encircled red star and crescent; national colors: red, white

National anthem
Name: Humat Al Hima (Defenders of the Homeland)
Lyricsmusic: Mustafa Sadik AL-RAFII and Aboul-Qacem ECHEBBI/Mohamad Abdel WAHAB: note: adopted 1957, replaced 1958, restored 1987; Mohamad Abdel WAHAB also composed the music for the anthem of the United Arab Emirates

National heritage


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Economy overview: Tunisia's economy - structurally designed to favor vested interests - faced an array of challenges exposed by the 2008 global financial crisis that helped precipitate the 2011 Arab Spring revolution. After the revolution and a series of terrorist attacks, including on the country’s tourism sector, barriers to economic inclusion continued to add to slow economic growth and high unemployment.Following an ill-fated experiment with socialist economic policies in the 1960s, Tunisia focused on bolstering exports, foreign investment, and tourism, all of which have become central to the country's economy. Key exports now include textiles and apparel, food products, petroleum products, chemicals, and phosphates, with about 80% of exports bound for Tunisia's main economic partner, the EU. Tunisia's strategy, coupled with investments in education and infrastructure, fueled decades of 4-5% annual GDP growth and improved living standards. Former President Zine el Abidine BEN ALI (1987-2011) continued these policies, but as his reign wore on cronyism and corruption stymied economic performance, unemployment rose, and the informal economy grew. Tunisia’s economy became less and less inclusive. These grievances contributed to the January 2011 overthrow of BEN ALI, further depressing Tunisia's economy as tourism and investment declined sharply.Tunisia’s government remains under pressure to boost economic growth quickly to mitigate chronic socio-economic challenges, especially high levels of youth unemployment, which has persisted since the 2011 revolution. Successive terrorist attacks against the tourism sector and worker strikes in the phosphate sector, which combined account for nearly 15% of GDP, slowed growth from 2015 to 2017. Tunis is seeking increased foreign investment and working with the IMF through an Extended Fund Facility agreement to fix fiscal deficiencies.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Rank: 78

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 155

Real gdp per capita:
Rank: 131

Gross national saving:
Rank: 152

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 71.7% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 20.8% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 19.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: 0% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 43.2% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -55.2% (2017 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 10.1% (2017 est.)
Industry: 26.2% (2017 est.)
Services: 63.8% (2017 est.)

Agriculture products: olives, olive oil, grain, tomatoes, citrus fruit, sugar beets, dates, almonds; beef, dairy products

Industries: petroleum, mining (particularly phosphate, iron ore), tourism, textiles, footwear, agribusiness, beverages

Industrial production growth rate: 0.5% (2017 est.)
Rank: 166

Labor force: 4.054 million (2017 est.)
Rank: 92
By occupation agriculture: 14.8%
By occupation industry: 33.2%
By occupation services: 51.7% (2014 est.)

Unemployment rate:
Rank: 174

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 15.5% (2010 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 27% (2010 est.)
Highest 10: 27% (2010 est.)

Distribution of family income gini index:
Rank: 68

Budget
Revenues: 9.876 billion (2017 est.)
Expenditures: 12.21 billion (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit: -5.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 180

Taxes and other revenues: 24.7% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Rank: 120

Public debt:
Rank: 51

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 176

Central bank discount rate: 5.75% (31 December 2010)
Rank: 73

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Rank: 114

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 77

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 78

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 73

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 75

Current account balance:
Rank: 179

Exports:
Rank: 80
Partners: France 32.1%, Italy 17.3%, Germany 12.4% (2017)
Commodities: clothing, semi-finished goods and textiles, agricultural products, mechanical goods, phosphates and chemicals, hydrocarbons, electrical equipment

Imports:
Rank: 80
Commodities: textiles, machinery and equipment, hydrocarbons, chemicals, foodstuffs
Partners: Italy 15.8%, France 15.1%, China 9.2%, Germany 8.1%, Turkey 4.8%, Algeria 4.7%, Spain 4.5% (2017)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 93

Debt external:
Rank: 79

Stock of direct foreign investment at home:
Rank: 64

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad:
Rank: 104

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Access electrification total population: 100% (2016)
Production: 18.44 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Production rank: 78
Consumption: 15.27 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Consumption rank: 79
Exports: 500 million kWh (2015 est.)
Exports rank: 68
Imports: 134 million kWh (2016 est.)
Imports rank: 96
Installed generating capacity: 5.768 million kW (2016 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 77
Generation sources fossil fuels: 94% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 49
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 198
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 1% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 151
Generation sources other renewable sources: 5% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 109

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 49,170 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 53
Crude oil exports: 39,980 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 42
Crude oil imports: 17,580 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 66
Crude oil proven reserves: 425 million bbl (1 January 2018 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 48

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 27,770 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products production rank: 85
Products consumption: 102,000 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products consumption rank: 79
Products exports: 13,660 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products exports rank: 75
Products imports: 85,340 bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products imports rank: 58

Natural gas
Production: 1.274 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Production rank: 64
Consumption: 5.125 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Consumption rank: 59
Exports: 0 m³ (2017 est.)
Exports rank: 202
Imports: 3.851 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Imports rank: 41
Proven reserves: 65.13 billion m³ (1 January 2018 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 58

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 23.42 million Mt (2017 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 82

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 1,113,168 (2017 est.)
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 10 (2017 est.)
Fixed lines rank: 76
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 14,334,080 (2017 est.)
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 126 (2017 est.)
Mobile cellular rank: 67

Telephone system
General assessment: above the African average and continuing to be upgraded; key centers are Sfax, Sousse, Bizerte, and Tunis; telephone network is completely digitized; Internet access available throughout the country (2016)
Domestic: in an effort to jumpstart expansion of the fixed-line network, the government awarded a concession to build and operate a VSAT network with international connectivity; rural areas are served by wireless local loops; competition between several mobile-cellular service providers has resulted in lower activation and usage charges and a strong surge in subscribership; overall fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity has reached about 135 telephones per 100 persons (2016)
International: country code - 216; a landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-4 submarine cable system that provides links to Europe, Middle East, and Asia; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Algeria and Libya; participant in Medarabtel; 2 international gateway digital switches (2016)

Broadcast media: broadcast media is mainly government-controlled; the state-run Tunisian Radio and Television Establishment (ERTT) operates 2 national TV networks, several national radio networks, and a number of regional radio stations; 1 TV and 3 radio stations are privately owned and report domestic news stories directly from the official Tunisian news agency; the state retains control of broadcast facilities and transmitters through L'Office National de la Telediffusion; Tunisians also have access to Egyptian, pan-Arab, and European satellite TV channels (2007)

Internet
Country code: .tn
Users total: 5,665,242 (July 2016 est.)
Users percent of population: 50.9% (July 2016 est.)
Users rank: 70

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 801,785 (2017 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 7 (2017 est.)
Rank: 71


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Military expenditures:
Rank: 48

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 20-23 years of age for compulsory service, 1-year service obligation; 18-23 years of age for voluntary service; Tunisian nationality required (2012)

Space program

Terrorist groups
Home based alQaida in the Islamic Maghreb:
Home based Ansar alSharia in Tunisia:
Home based Islamic State of Iraq and ashSham:


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National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 3 (2015)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 41 (2015)
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 3,496,190 (2015)
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 10,354,241
Note: mt-km (2015)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: TS (2016)

Airports: 29 (2013)
Rank: 120
With paved runways total: 15 (2013)
With paved runways over 3047 m: 4 (2013)
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 6 (2013)
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2 (2013)
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 3 (2013)
With unpaved runways total: 14 (2013)
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1 (2013)
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 5 (2013)
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 8 (2013)

Heliports

Pipelines: 68 km condensate, 3,111 km gas, 1381 km oil, 453 km refined products (2013)

Railways
Total: 2,173 km
Note: 1.435-1.000-m gauge (2014)
Standard gauge: 471 km
Narrow gauge: 1694 km
Dual gauge: 8 km
Rank: 71

Roadways
Total: 19,418 km (2010)
Paved: 14,756 km
Note: (includes 357 km of expressways) (2010)
Unpaved: 4,662 km (2010)
Rank: 113

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 62 (2017)
By type: general cargo 13, oil tanker 1, other 48 (2017)
Rank: 106

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Bizerte, Gabes, Rades, Sfax, Skhira


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Disputes international: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs