Tunisia

Tunisia (Arabic: تونس Tūnis, Berber), officially the Tunisian Republic (الجمهورية التونسية ‎), is a country situated on the Mediterranean coast of North Africa. It is the northernmost African country and the smallest of the nations situated along the Atlas mountain range. Around forty percent of the country is composed of the Sahara desert, with much of the remainder consisting of particularly fertile soil, and a 1300-km coastline. Both played a prominent role in ancient times, first with the famous Phoenician city of Carthage, and later, as the Africa Province, which became known as the bread basket of the Roman Empire.

 Governorates

Governorates of Tunisia
Tunisia is subdivided into 24 governorates, they are:

The governorates are divided into 262 "delegations" or "districts" (mutamadiyat), and further subdivided into municipalities (shaykhats)[2].

Geography

Tunisia is in northern Africa, between the Mediterranean Sea and the Sahara Desert. It is bordered by Algeria in the west and Libya in the south-east. Much of the southern region is semi-arid and desert. The north of the country is mountainous, with a climate that is temperate with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. The south of the country is dominated by the Sahara desert.

Economy

Tunisia has a diverse economy, with important agricultural, mining, energy, tourism, petroleum, and manufacturing sectors. Governmental control of economic affairs, whilst still heavy, has gradually lessened over the past decade with increasing privatization, simplification of the tax structure, and a prudent approach to debt. Real growth averaged 5.0% in the 1990s, and inflation is slowing. Increased trade and tourism have been key elements in this steady economic growth. Tunisia's association agreement with the European Union (EU), the first such accord between the EU and a Mediterranean country, entered into force on March 1, 1998. Under the agreement Tunisia will gradually remove barriers to trade with the EU over the next decade.
Broader privatization, further liberalization of the investment code to increase foreign investment, and improvements in government efficiency are among the challenges for the future of Tunisia. According to the British Philip's university atlas of 2000, Tunisia also possessed a major phosphate reserve(s) in the middle section of the country.

Demographics

While the vast majority of modern Tunisians identify themselves as Arab, most Tunisians descend from indigenous Berbers: less than 20% of the Tunisian gene pool comes from the Middle East.[3] Numerous civilizations have invaded, migrated to, and been assimilated into the population over the millennia. Significant influxes of population have come through conquest by the Phoenicians, Romans, Vandals, Arabs, Ottomans, and French. Many Spanish Moors and Jews also arrived at the end of the 15th century.
Nearly all Tunisians (98% of the population) are Muslim.[4] There has been a Jewish population on the southern island of Djerba for 2500 years, and though considerably diminished, there remains a small Jewish population in Tunis which is descended from those who fled Spain in the late 15th century. There is also a small indigenous Christian population.[5] Small nomadic indigenous minorities have been mostly assimilated into the larger population.
Standard Arabic is Tunisia's official language. However, most people speak vernacular Tunisian Arabic as native language. This variety is very different from the standard language. French is also used a lot in all domains.

Education

Prior to 1958 education in Tunisia was only available to a privileged minority (14%). It is now given an extremely high priority and accounts for 6% of G.N.P. A basic education for both boys and girls between the ages of 6 and 16 has been compulsory since 1991.
While children generally acquire Tunisian Arabic at home, when they enter school at age 5, they are taught in Classical Arabic. From the age of 8, they are taught French while English is introduced at the age of 10.