19 June 2009
Tunis — In its annual report on Tunisia entitled "The Report, Tunisia 2009", the Oxford Business Group (OBG) has published an interview by President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali where he evokes the country's main achievements over the past five years, as well as Tunisia's priorities concerning economic development, investment, youth and employment.
In this interview President Ben Ali stresses the diversification of the Tunisian economy which has enabled it "to adapt to the changes in the broader world economy."
He also said that Tunisia has increased its development budgets for 2009 with a view to foster projects in infrastructure, technology and community facilities. A credit line of 100 million Euros was set up with a view "to encourage non resident firms to invest in Tunisia", he added.
As regards the consequences of the economic and financial crisis, President Ben Ali said that after having "guarded the economy against direct hits on the banking and financial sector in general, we will nonetheless continue to closely follow the fluctuations of the global situation so as to buffer Tunisia against the dangers of this crisis and its potential adverse effects."
To a question on the measures taken to encourage the participation of young people into political life, President Ben Ali said that measures were recently taken to lower the age of membership in the parliament to 23, as well as the voting age from 20 to 18. "Our motto Tunisia First, Youth Always" encapsulates the importance of Tunisia's commitment to promote the participation of young people into political life, he said adding that "Taking care of young people, listening to their concerns and helping them fulfil their aspirations constitutes in fact a constant action for which we spare no effort".
In relation to a question on the place of university graduates in a knowledge society, President Ben Ali said that Tunisia has introduced continuous reforms into its system of education to adapt it to the intelligence based economy. He stressed the growing number of Tunisian students majoring in science, telecommunications, nanotechnology, genetic engineering, noting that "During the current academic year there are nearly 50,000 students enrolled in ICT related areas of specialisation".
Evoking the dynamism of Tunisia's civil society, President Ben Ali said "there are today some 9000 association against only 2000 in 1987, a fact which conferred to Tunisian civil society a remarkable vitality, whose effects on public life have started to show". He also said that "The rehabilitation of associative life was one of the strategic choices of the pluralist democratic process operated in Tunisia."
The Oxford Business Group which publishes economic and political intelligence on many of the world's markets, is considered as one of the world's most reliable sources of political and economic information.
Based on independent and accurate intelligence, the OBG reports are written by a team of analysts who are based on the ground for six months every year and are the result of interviews and meetings with political and business leaders.
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