Tunis and Rome: A partnership of opportunity in trade, energy and skills

Zawya

14 hours ago

Tunis - A few days after the visit of the Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, to Tunisia, statements were issued regarding economic cooperation between the two countries for the first five months of the current year.
These statements highlighted the existence of trade cooperation that benefits Tunisia.
However, observers believe that, alongside this cooperation, both countries possessed negotiating power that enabled the discussion of many important issues, foremost among them irregular migration and the utilisation of energy surpluses.
Not far from these relations heading toward development, through exchanges of visits at the highest levels, circles of finance and business, such as the Confederation of Tunisian Citizen Enterprises CONECT, believe that there is an opportunity to plan in order to benefit from the climate of understanding with the Italian side to push forward the wheel of investment, whether by attracting joint investments or exploring new prospects for multilateral cooperation.
Trade and investment: fuel for traditional cooperation
Trade between Tunisia and Italy in 2025 witnessed a notable improvement, with total exchanges reaching 10,452.3 million dinars. Tunisia's exports to Italy during the first half of this year amounted to 5,575.6 million dinars compared to imports of 4,876.8 million dinars.
These figures made, according to Anis Basti, head of the Export Promotion Centre office in Milan (Italy), the Tunisian Italian trade balance positive in favour of Tunisia, as the coverage rate of exports over imports during the first five months of this year reached 115%.
However, Tunisia's imports from Italy are not final or luxury products but essential raw materials, particularly for the industrial and agricultural sectors.
These include petroleum products, fabrics, leather, and agricultural machinery, according to the representative of the Export House in Milan.
Tunisia supplies the Italian market with mechanical and electrical industries (electric car cables, medical devices, electricity meters, and electrical equipment), accounting for 36.5%.
Tunisian textiles reach the Italian market at a rate of 21.22%, in addition to a list of other diverse industries such as plastic products, hydrocarbons, medical machines, inorganic chemicals, glass and its products, furniture, and ceramics—at a rate of 19.1%.
Italy, the land of fashion, continues to import leather and footwear from Tunisia at a rate of 11.3%, as well as food industries.
Despite ranking among the top producers of olive oil, Italy imports significant quantities of olive oil, fish, shellfish, dates, dried tomatoes, and fresh vegetables from Tunisia at a rate of 11.7%.
These important figures prompt the Export Promotion Centre in Milan to make greater efforts to develop trade exchanges between Tunisia and Italy and strengthen the presence of various Tunisian products in this market, according to Basti.
The representatives work on identifying export opportunities available for Tunisian exporters and providing support, guidance, and proper coaching for exporting companies.
This is done by supplying market-specific information about the Italian market, the materials it imports, organizing exploratory visits, participating in specialised exhibitions and trade fairs, and conducting evaluations and follow-ups based on market changes to keep economic actors informed and adaptable.
According to Basti, the Italian authorities attach great importance to Tunisia at all levels, especially economically, by strengthening the economic partnership with Tunisia in particular and African countries in general, especially in the fields of energy, startups, artificial intelligence, and agriculture.
Tunisian-Italian relations have developed into a strategic partnership, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia–Ukraine war, as Italy has started focusing more on Euro-Mediterranean partners rather than Asian ones.
Basti sees the partnership between Tunisia and Italy as part of a sustainable cooperation dynamic that has been established over decades to support social and economic development in Tunisia.
The private sector: All roads lead to Rome
The Confederation of Tunisian Citizen Enterprises, CONECT, which represents a wide range of investors and businesspeople in Tunisia, considers, through its member Bilal Ben Hamida, that Italy remains a strategic partner for Tunisia.
Businessmen affiliated with the confederation give great importance to the Italian market, both in terms of ongoing cooperation based on goods exchange and investment involving funding joint or multilateral projects, according to the CONECT representative.
In its efforts to focus on the Italian market, CONECT is organising a mission of business owners to Italy to participate in the international fair in Rimini next October.
As part of the Tunisia–Italy cooperation agenda, CONECT International is also planning to organise an investment forum in Tunisia in partnership with the Italian employers' organisation.
The CONECT representative emphasised the importance of the Italian governmental visits to Tunisia, which reflect Italy's interest, noting that Italy is Tunisia's main supplier and second-largest exporter.
The volume of bilateral trade between the two countries amounts to about €7.1 billion, according to data from the Italian Embassy in Tunis.
Italy is also the second-largest foreign investor in Tunisia, with its investments accounting for 16% of foreign capital in the local market.
Tunisia hosts around 1,000 Italian companies operating in various sectors, employing around 83,000 people.
The national business environment and investment opportunities available for Italian investors have contributed to reinforcing this cooperation amid Tunisia's growing interest in attracting more Italian investment.
Vocational training: A legal transit visa
In an effort to curb irregular migration, the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation signed, on June 21, 2025, a financing agreement worth €6.5 million to launch the 'Professional Tunisia – Promoting Employment in Tunisia through Dynamic Vocational Training' project.
The project aims to strengthen youth employability in Tunisia, a recurring topic in negotiations between Tunisian and Italian officials, in an attempt to regulate labour migration legally and establish an effective approach to skilled migration.
Funded entirely by the Italian government and running over three years, the project seeks to enhance the employability of Tunisian youth by modernising and revitalising the national vocational training system.
It will focus on improving the quality of vocational training, making it more accessible and aligned with labour market demands, especially for youth and women.
The project will also support the modernisation of training centres, introduce innovative pedagogical methods, and strengthen public-private partnerships.
According to the Italian ambassador to Tunisia, the project reflects his government's commitment to supporting the vocational training sector in partnership with Tunisian authorities.
He noted that this new initiative with UNIDO aligns with the "Mattei Plan for Africa," Tunisia Vision 2035, and national strategies in employment, youth socioeconomic inclusion, and economic development.
It will open real and sustainable prospects for Tunisian youth, help form a qualified workforce, and expand opportunities for decent employment.
ELMED: A regional project to harness energy surpluses
Experts expect the Tunisia–Italy electricity interconnection project, ELMED, scheduled to enter into operation in 2028, to strengthen the stability of electricity supply in Tunisia.
This will be achieved through energy transfer between Tunisia and Italy via a high-voltage 400-kilovolt submarine cable with a capacity of 600 megawatts and a length of 200 km, offering Tunisia a major opportunity to export renewable energy to Italy and Europe.
It appears that the submarine cable for the ELMED electricity interconnection project between Tunisia and Italy was laid in July. Plans to draw loans are scheduled by the end of 2026 depending on the project's progress, according to data presented by the CEO of STEG, Faysal Tarifa, and his delegation during a hearing before the Finance and Budget Committee of the Assembly of People's Representatives at the end of June 2025.
However, the project faces several challenges, including a lack of expertise, which necessitated recourse to foreign consultancy firms and caused some initial delays, in addition to land ownership issues.
The officials noted that the project would contribute to developing electricity exchanges across the Mediterranean via a bidirectional 600 MW interconnection.
It would also strengthen the stability of the Tunisian electrical system and complement the grid interconnection with Algeria, helping to cope with peak summer demand.
ELMED will enhance energy cooperation across the Mediterranean, initiated in 1977 with the TRANSMED natural gas pipeline stretching 2,475 km from Algeria to Italy via Tunisia (370 km).
According to the Italian electricity transmission company TERNA, the ELMED project will allow Italy to meet its electricity needs, which reached 31.3 billion kWh by the end of July 2024, a 4.5% increase compared to July 2023.
This first direct electrical link between Europe and Africa, undertaken by STEG and its Italian counterpart TERNA, will secure electricity supply by reducing demand during summer peaks amid global warming and climate change, according to the National Chamber of Photovoltaic Energy under the Tunisian Union of Industry, Trade, and Handicrafts.
The ELMED project will also offer Tunisia the opportunity to export green energy to Europe.
Experts, during a parallel event at the Rimini international exhibition, stressed the need to develop renewable energy on a large scale, modernise electric grids, and invest in storage solutions to ensure the world's access to reliable, secure, and affordable electricity.
Tunisian and Italian stakeholders believe that laying the 600 MW high-voltage direct current submarine cable from the "Partanna" station in Sicily to the "El-Melaab" station in the industrial zone of Menzel Temime (Cap Bon), as part of the ELMED project, will boost the integration of European energy systems in North Africa, promote efficient energy use, and increase the operational flexibility of electric systems.
Tunisian–Italian cooperation also includes major projects such as the 'Taranto Innovation Zone,' which aims to achieve energy sustainability between the two countries by launching a platform to foster innovation and interaction between universities, research centres, businesses, and startups.
It will serve as a think tank to generate, develop, and test new ideas in the energy field. It will also contribute to developing innovative projects aligned with new technological trends in energy and strengthening a culture of innovation, in addition to making Italian expertise in submarine electricity transmission available to STEG technicians and engineers.
Major projects also include 'TANIT,' which aims to modernise Tunisia's agricultural sector, improve water resource management, and boost innovation in the agri-food sector.
These major projects, falling within Tunisian–Italian cooperation, represent a significant step in bilateral collaboration, reinforcing Italy's role as a strategic partner for Tunisia on its path toward a resilient and sustainable economy.
© Tap 2025 Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).