10. TUNISIA

This country report was written by Mohamed Hadj Ali Salem, National Institute of Agronomy, Tunis, Tunisia.

10.1 Introduction

Tunisia is located within the northern part of Africa opening on the northern and southeastern Mediterranean Sea; it is bordered by Algeria on the west, the Mediterranean Sea on the north and east, Libya on the south-east and the Sahara on the south. Its coastline is 1 300 km long with five lagoons and one lake with a total surface of more than 50 000 ha; the biggest lagoon, El Bibane, covers over 23 000 ha (40 percent of the lagoons’ total surface). The country surface is about 160 000 km2 with a population of 11 million inhabitants (according to the last census in 2004). Fisheries is an active sector producing more than 100 000 tonnes/year (102 000 tonnes in 2010), with 4 500 tonnes from aquaculture (including inland aquaculture) and about 450 tonnes from lagoons, and offers job opportunities (both directly and indirectly) to more than 100 000 people. Coastal lagoons are less productive than in the past (650 tonnes in 1995 and more than 1 000 tonnes during the 1980s). The country exports about 20 000 tonnes and imports about 50 000 tonnes of fish products, making the apparent pro capita fish consumption up to about 13 kg, something that is considered as not enough when compared with the 2010 worldwide consumption of 17 kg (DGPA, 1995–2009).

The development of the fishery sector is considered as a priority by public authorities, and several actions are planned, especially concerning the development of marine aquaculture to boost fish production with the aim of meeting the growing demand for proteins. Unfortunately, coastal lagoons are suffering from many natural and human impacts, requesting urgent interventions to improve their environment conditions and to allow their rapid recovering.