Brussels, 06/05/2010 (Agence Europe) - On 11 May, Tunisia and the EU will be convening their association council. One of the main items on their agenda will be the follow-up to be given to Tunisia's request, presented in March, to benefit from “advanced status”, like Morocco. On the whole, the dossier does not contain any particularly controversial issues excepting, on one hand, Tunisia's hope to enjoy greater support for the development of its economy and its anchoring in the European area, and, on the other, the EU's wish to open up markets to the trade in services, improve farm trade and encourage Tunisia to prepare for enhanced political dialogue. The EU which, whenever it can, highlights its preference for incentives rather than sanctions, plans to promote political openness in a country that is often named and blamed by associations that defend freedoms and a number of MEPs alike.
On the whole, Euro-Tunisian dialogue runs smoothly and is aimed at attaining economic objectives. Tunisia now enjoys full industrial free trade with the EU27. Afif Chebi, Tunisia's Minister for Industry and Technology, recently expressed his satisfaction concerning implementation of Euro-Tunisian industrial cooperation over the past three decades. During a forum devoted to “30 years of cooperation” end April and attended by EU Ambassador Adrianus Koetsenruijter, he underlined the positive results of cooperation. He said the challenges faced by the Tunisian industrial sector and the European industrial alike require the partnership to be enhanced within the “advanced status” framework requested. Industrial exports to the EU have increased 20-fold in 30 years (going, as the minister pointed out, from half a billion euro in 1980 to €10 billion in 2009), and imports of European manufactured goods have increased from €400 million in 1980 to €9 billion in 2009. More significant still is the number of European companies that have taken a foothold in Tunisia. Over 2,200 European firms are today operating in Tunisia, mainly through EU support programmes that have fostered this change. Afif Chelbi defends the idea, not of relocation in his country, but of working in common. “Europe does not wish, over time, to become an industrial wasteland, a continent without factories. Its future in this sector is related to the strengthening of its links with countries close-by such as Tunisia”, he said. He went on to add: “Unlike certain generally accepted ideas, when a European company takes up in Tunisia, in most cases it helps to keep employment in Europe going (…). Relocation to the south does not destroy jobs in the north”, the minister said. He also went on to say that “growth relays are in the south”. According to Chelbi, this is a common challenge to be raised in the face of globalisation. He pointed out: “The share of emerging countries in global industrial production exceeded 50% last year” while Europe has “experienced massive disindustrialisation over the past 30 years”. (F.B./transl.jl)