EY Tunisia, Novation City, and UNIDO Unveil the 2nd Edition of the Industry 4.0 Barometer, Shedding Light on the Progress and Challenges of Digital Transformation in Tunisia's Industry
This barometer, a follow-up to the 2022 edition, surveyed 203 executives and managers from various sectors to provide a precise snapshot and analyze trends between 2022 and 2024.
Revealing Trends
The results reflect a growing awareness of the importance of Industry 4.0. By 2024, 38% of Tunisian companies reported discussing an Industry 4.0 strategy, up from 30% in 2022. However, only 5% have finalized their strategy, and 14% are in the implementation phase, a decline from 2022 (21%).
The integration of technologies remains a major challenge:
- Digitalization of processes: While digital data collection has progressed, integration and automation remain limited (15% of companies have integrated processes in 2024, down from 28% in 2022).
- Investments: 56% of companies allocate less than 100,000 TND to their transformation, limiting their ability to adopt advanced technologies like IoT or artificial intelligence.
Challenges of Transformation
The main obstacles identified are the high cost of investments (39% of respondents) and resistance to change (24%). Despite this, a marked interest in operational excellence and production efficiency shows that the transition to Industry 4.0 remains a priority for many companies.
A Call to Action
Amira Jamoussi, Associate Business Consulting at EY Tunisia, states: "While the acceleration of carbon regulation has pushed some of our industrialists to prioritize 'green' over 'smart', we believe that both can only advance together. This is the very purpose of Industry 5.0, which aims to put technology at the service of more human and sustainable environments."
Anas Rochdi, Innovation Director at Novation City, adds: "The emergence of new technologies related to data science and artificial intelligence, particularly with the advent of generative AI, is revolutionizing industrial uses."
The barometer results show that it is essential to reinforce efforts to support industrialists in addressing these challenges. It is imperative that the private and public sectors join forces to promote the digital transformation of Tunisia's industry, by supporting necessary investments and developing skills adapted to this evolution.
Encouraging Perspectives
The barometer highlights the emergence of new priorities, including sustainability. Although this dimension remains marginal (8% of respondents mention waste and CO₂ emission management as a priority), it indicates a growing awareness of environmental issues in the context of digital transformation.
