Tunisia has a large economy including agriculture, mining, energy and factory production, and factory production is dominated by the textile and leather industries, which account for 45% of total exports, with half of the factory production sector employed in these two sectors. Are employed. Tunisia’s leather business does not reach Ethiopia, but it is one of the best in Africa.
289 companies with 10 or more employees work in the Tunisian leather industry, of which 178 companies produce only for export. Foreigners own 128 companies, and 82 companies are wholly owned by foreigners.
The total value of this sector in 2004 was equal to 149.4 million dollars, while in 2000 it was equal to 117 million dollars. But investment fell from $ 4.97 million to $ 3.46 million during the same period.
The total number of people working in companies with 10 or more employees was 25,430, of which 20,914 worked in factories that produce only for export. The average annual growth during this period was 7%.
Italy is Tunisia’s main market, with 40% of Tunisia’s exports going to Italy, followed by France (38%) and Germany (10%).
Leather production industry and crises
Industries in the Southern Mediterranean region face high energy costs, scarcity of water and increasing pressure for environmental certifications from international markets. In 2009 UNIDO launched the MED TEST initiative to help industrial enterprises meet these challenges through the transfer of cleaner technology, including those operating in the leather sector in Tunisia.
Nadia Somai Boubaker works for the Centre National du Cuir et de la Chaussure (National Centre of Leather and Footwear) and is the Tunisia National Coordinator of the MED TEST II project. She explains:
The leather sector is one of the most important economic sectors in Tunisia. However, the industrial process involved in leather production uses high quantities of water and chemicals and is, next to the oil industry, one of the most polluting production sectors in the world.
For us in Tunisia, it is important not only to decrease pollution and improve the environment, but it is also equally vital to strengthen the competitiveness of the leather production sector and to create new opportunities for green jobs.
At the National Centre, we work together with UNIDO to improve the production standards of the Tunisian leather industry when it comes to the environment and resource efficiency. Together with UNIDO, we demonstrated in the MED TEST project, which ran from 2009 to 2013, that the transfer of environmentally sound technologies (TEST) not only reduces costs for the producer but also reduces pollution from leather production.
For instance, one tannery installed equipment to valorize the waste from leather production. A major part of this waste is made of the lower layer of the skin and the underlying fatty tissue. Instead of flushing this into the water system, we established a process where it gets turned into resources for making soap and fertilizer.
The shoe industry in North African countries, including Tunisia, has crises similar to those in the shoe industry in Iran. From imports to shortages of raw materials, the challenges facing the shoe industry in Tunisia are tackling.
The shoe industry in Tunisia is on the verge of extinction, according to the news of the leather and footwear industry, quoted by the “Ultra Tunisia” news agency. A report by Maryam Al-Naseri, a reporter for the Tunisian Ultra news agency, described the situation of the shoe industry in Tunisia as follows:
“What is the difference between a Tunisian shoe and an imported shoe or a smuggled shoe when all of them are similar in shape and construction?” Where do the raw materials used in the shoe industry come from? Are these shoes of the required quality?
These are questions that most Tunisians, especially the middle class, have never asked themselves, because for most of them, it does not matter if the shoes they buy are domestically produced or imported or smuggled. The important issue for them is the price of shoes and their cheapness.
Last year, the country attained roughly 550 million euros from exports of leather and shoes. The aim is double the amount by 2030 by adding value and attracting foreign investors
In order to reach that goal, Tunisia is planning to attract foreign investment into the industry and to do it the country’s authorities are focusing on its “attractive production costs compared with other Mediterranean countries”.
A central location in the Euro-Mediterranean logistics chain, less than a three-hour flight away from European metropolises gives the country some interesting advantages.
“Tunisia’s location gives it access to European countries as well as African and Gulf ones, where growth is solid and purchasing power is high”, Tunisia’s ambassador to Brasília, Mohamed Hedi Soltani told ANBA, the Brazil-Arab News Agency.
The country has also been focusing on celebrating preferential and bilateral agreements, including free trade agreements with the several countries and regions.
According to ANBA, tax and financial incentives available to businesses, particularly exporting ones, include VAT-free exports and imports of raw material and equipment. Locally sourced goods and services are also eligible for VAT exemption.
Profits on equity investments in foreign currency can be wired abroad freely. Companies in services and industry get a four-year grace period on taxes levied on revenue as well as corporate taxes, among other advantages.
Tunisia’s Footwear Industry
The footwear industry in Tunisia is mainly located in the areas of Nabeul, Tunis and Sfax. Tunisia is Africa’s most important footwear exporter, but according to the World Footwear 2020 Yearbook (Available HERE) its exports fell in 2019.
Tunisia exports mainly to large European markets, led by Italy and Germany, and sources mostly from China. The country’s industry exports mainly leather footwear (with a share of 67% in the total footwear exports).
The country’s authorities recently organised a meeting to discuss the challenges faced by the country’s leather and footwear industry.
During the event, national leather and footwear stakeholders discussed the daily issues they have to face and tried to anticipate future prospects for these industries.
According to the local entities, the Tunisian leather and footwear sector is going through a very difficult time. A number of companies are facing serious issues, and the risk of closure is strong for some.
Some of the stakeholders gathered concluded that unregulated imports of footwear and unfair competition from footwear and leather products illegally imported by second-hand stores combined with lack of quality checks of imported finished and semi-finished products are driving this difficult situation in the domestic market.
Other concerns mentioned included the high price of raw materials (drop in the value of the Tunisian Dinar), issues in finding specialised workers and artisans and the inixistance of training programmes.
According to National Leather and Shoe Centre (CNCC) exports from Tunisia’s leather and shoes grow 11, 5% in first trimester of 2013, having achieved $177 million dollars.
The increase was driven by an 11, 4% hike in exports of footwear, which represents $ 104 million dollars.
The main target market was Italy, followed by France and Germany.In relation to imports, Tunisia resisted grew of 9% which represents $97 million dollars, resulting in a trade surplus of $ 80 million.
Tunisia’s imports consist mainly of leathers, hides, accessories, parts, and uppers.Data from CNCC show that China was the main supplying country of footwear, being responsible of 49.3% of Tunisia’s imports.
For the result:
A simple stroll through the back alleys of Tunisia’s old city reveals a wealth of small and large shoe and clothing stores.
These shops are basically the shops where, until a few decades ago, the old shoemakers used to produce handmade shoes; Shoes, most of which are sourced in Tunisia. Gradually, however, following the rampant smuggling and importation of Chinese shoes, in-house production waned and the number of old shoe manufacturers gradually closed their shops to the point where they now do not even reach the number of fingers on one hand.
