Tunisia's Economic Crisis: A University Degree No Longer a Way Out of Poverty

Tunisia is mired in a prolonged economic crisis marked by high unemployment, deteriorating public services and rising prices. For many university graduates, a degree once seen as a route out of poverty no longer brings the job opportunities they expected.

Cherine Ghanmi, born in the poor town of al-Mazzunah in the central province of Sidi Bou Zid, used to walk five kilometres to school while her parents struggled to keep her in education. The family hoped that when she graduated in 2012 she would find work and help support her parents after years of sacrifice. More than a decade later, she is still unemployed and still dependent on her family.

"We studied and graduated believing we had found a way out of poverty," Ghanmi said. "We thought that once we had a job we could make up for the hardship, repay our parents and make them proud. But reality was a great shock. Instead of helping them, we have become an even heavier burden."

The 'Dignity' march

On 27 September, unemployed graduates began a march of about 300km from Menzel Bouzaiane in central Tunisia to the capital, Tunis, demanding jobs and the enforcement of a law promised to open the way into the public sector. According to the organisers, the march, called "Dignity", set off with 23 people and was joined along the route by more graduates, bringing the total to more than 120.

The journey demanded considerable physical endurance, and several participants had to stop because of exhaustion and injuries before continuing towards the capital. On 6 October, police stopped the group in the town of Borj Cedria, south of Tunis. Participants said they were told they could travel individually but not as a group. The marchers had hoped to reach the outskirts of Carthage, where the presidential palace is located, to increase pressure.

For Ghanmi, "Dignity" is more than a march; it is a voice for the hardship and frustration of graduates who have spent years looking for work. Many protesters said they had waited years for promises of public-sector recruitment to become real opportunities.

Their demands come amid widespread discontent over Tunisia's economic and political direction. On 17 October, thousands gathered in Tunis to protest against the government of President Kais Saied, against deteriorating living conditions and against restrictions on freedoms. The demonstration, led by the Tunisian General Labour Union (UGTT), opposition groups and civil society organisations, was seen as one of the largest against Saied in years. Participants voiced anger over unemployment and the difficulty many households face in meeting basic needs.

Saied, who has concentrated power since 2021, presents his political project as a way to fight corruption and remedy the failures of the old political class. Critics say the centralisation of power has weakened democratic checks without solving the country's economic problems.

Unfulfilled promises

The unemployment figures reflect the scale of the challenge. According to Tunisia's National Institute of Statistics (INS), the overall unemployment rate stood at 14.9% in the second quarter of 2026. For university graduates it was 26.6%. For female graduates the rate was 35.6%, against 14.2% for men. Among those aged 15 to 24, unemployment reached 35.4%.

"Almost all the successive governments since the 2011 revolution did not make the economy, development and solving social problems a real priority," Cherif Khraifi, spokesman for the Tunisian Association of University Graduates, told Al Jazeera. "Their main concern was ensuring they stayed in power."

Efforts to tackle graduate unemployment have repeatedly raised expectations. Law No. 38 of 2022 was meant to set out a path to employment for the long-term unemployed with degrees, but implementation stalled because of financial constraints. Khraifi argued that such measures usually act as a "pressure valve" rather than a solution.

Law No. 18 of 2025 provides for special recruitment of long-term unemployed graduates into the public sector and public services, requires a digital platform for registration and sets out priority criteria. Recruitment is to take place in stages over a maximum of three years from the law's publication. The law was issued on 22 December 2025 and took effect on 23 December 2025; Article 6 stipulates phased recruitment within no more than three years of publication. Participants in "Dignity" are demanding a clear implementation process, with concrete steps and a recruitment timetable.

Ghanmi is also sceptical about Saied's community enterprise programme, which is intended to promote local development and create jobs through projects set up by residents in their own communities. "The authorities insist on promoting community enterprise as the answer to jobs and development, but no enterprise has managed to do that," she said.

According to Khraifi, public-sector recruitment alone cannot solve a problem of this scale. Tunisia also needs investment and businesses able to expand and hire more people. In disadvantaged regions, where jobs are scarce and access to capital limited, starting a business is even harder.

An economy unable to create opportunity

Anis Ben Said, a tax adviser and university lecturer, argued that Tunisia's problem "is not a lack of skills, but an economy that cannot turn skills into production, investment and job opportunities". He told Al Jazeera that weak investment has held back business creation and job generation, while poor infrastructure and unreliable public services make it harder for firms to operate, especially in regions that already struggle to attract investment.

According to the INS, Tunisia's economy grew 2.7% in 2025 and 2.4% in the first half of 2026. In September, the World Bank forecast growth of 2.3% for the full year. Even so, economic growth does not necessarily create enough jobs for those who need them. For unemployed graduates, such figures offer little reassurance if growth does not translate into accessible work.

"The financial crisis explains part of the problem, but it does not justify everything," Ben Said said, pointing to shortcomings in investment and in the management and maintenance of public infrastructure as barriers to economic activity. "Infrastructure investment is not just public spending; it is productive economic investment."

This summer, extreme heat coincided with power cuts and water shortages in many parts of Tunisia. Disruptions to basic services hit businesses and fuelled public anger. Reuters reported that repeated power and water outages were among the grievances raised at the 17 October protest.

For small businesses, disruptions to basic services mean lost customers and lost income, making an already difficult living even harder.

In L'Aouina, a northern suburb of Tunis, Khalil, a 20-year-old barber, said he was waiting for a chance to leave the country by boat. "There is nothing left worth staying for in this country. Dying at sea would be a release," he said. "I will leave as soon as I can and let them find their own solution. Our generation has borne every crisis, and there is nothing left for us."

Others are struggling to keep their businesses going. Khalil's neighbour, a grocery store owner who asked not to be named, said prolonged water shortages had worn him down. "I think the only solution is for someone to take over this shop. I can't keep up with these crises any more," he said.

For Ghanmi, years without work have brought more than financial hardship. "Wounds on the body heal, but wounds in the mind and the heart do not," she said. "Truly, they never heal."