Tunisian Agriculture: A Sector in Need of Resilience
Tunisian agriculture has always been renowned for its authenticity and the quality of its products, which have been recognized internationally. As a result, Tunisia has managed to carve out a place for itself on the global agricultural scene, with its dates, olive oil, and citrus fruits overshadowing the agricultural productions of major players like Spain and Italy.
Challenges Facing Tunisian Agriculture
Despite its solid reputation, the sector has always struggled. The lack of hydraulic and financial resources, delicate climate, and poor governance have hindered the growth of Tunisian agriculture, making it difficult for the country to achieve sustainable self-sufficiency.
Introducing the Ardii-Tounes Project
In this context, the new "Ardii-Tounes" project has been launched, with the goal of making Tunisian agriculture a more durable and resilient sector. The project, which stands for Agriculture Résiliente, Durable et Inclusive pour l’Investissement en Tunisie (Resilient, Sustainable, and Inclusive Agriculture for Investment in Tunisia), offers a range of solutions tailored to the specific needs and challenges of the agricultural sector.
A Global Partnership
This initiative is the result of a new partnership between the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources, and Fisheries, and the PARM (Platform for Agricultural Risk Management), created in 2013 as part of the G20. This global, multi-partner collaboration is guided and supported by the European Commission (EC), the French Development Agency (AFD), the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the German Development Bank (KFW) through AUDA-NEPAD.
Prioritizing Agricultural Risks
The local objective in Tunisia is to prioritize agricultural risks and develop adequate instruments to be implemented in the cereal and olive oil value chains. This will be achieved through risk assessment studies (EER) that will identify the actions to be taken to address the challenges faced by the sector.
Identified Challenges
The challenges identified for the two value chains are:
- Climate risks for the cereal chain
- Climate risks coupled with price volatility risks for the olive oil chain
Recommended Measures
To address these challenges, the following measures are recommended:
- Implementing agronomic and economic measures to mitigate climate risks in the cereal chain
- Creating a market and price observatory, an interprofessional group, and climate risk insurance for the olive oil chain
- Encouraging microfinance institutions to support small farmers and investing in climate information and observation systems
Program Budget
The total budget for the Ardii-Tounes program is approximately $224 million. The overall goal is to make risk management an integral part of planning and policy implementation in the agricultural sector, going beyond the specific risks associated with the cereal and olive oil chains.
